Connie Universe and The Crystal Temps
by DisneymlpZeldalover
Summary: A mom-swap au! Connie Universe is a gem human hybrid growing up with her three moms, Jasper, Lapis, and Peridot! Together, along with new friends, can they protect Beach City?
1. Gem Glow

A yell of agony erupted from a bookstore and Connie Universe fell to the floor. "Why?! Why, why, WHY?!" She sobbed.

Sadie gave a groan. "I don't know, Connie… But please, stop shaking me!"

The girl slowly released the short girl's shirt and glanced at the empty shelf. "How can The Spirit Morth saga be over?! It's the most thrilling, romantic and awesomest book series ever!"

"The author is done with the story, Connie." Lars shrugged. "Sorry."

"If you like the books so much, why don't you just make some more with your magic chest gem?" Sadie laughed.

"That's not how it works, Sadie. Right?" Connie glanced at the yellow diamond on her chest. She frowned.

"Oh, Lisa!" Connie cried, hugging a empty box set made for the books, "With your fair features on the outside, and your heart of gold on the inside… You were too good for this world…"

"Connie… Do you want to take that box home?"

She nodded softly.

* * *

Connie happily ran home, saying in her mind over and over again the book's slogan.

She ran up to the beach house which in truth was a temple and opened the door. "Guys! This is horrible!" Suddenly, a centipeetle attacked her. She squealed in horror but a fist of water suddenly punched it away. "Hi,  
Connie!" A blue girl cried, choke holding it.

Connie waved and glanced to a smaller green gem who swung a metal pole at another. A orange, very big gem snapped one in half.

"Wow! What are those?!"

"Sorry, Connie, we'll get these centipede clods out of your room! I think they're trying to get to the temple!" Peridot called.

"You don't have to get rid of them! They're interesting! Can we keep one?" Connie giggled. The one on Peridot's lap suddenly spit acid.

"Negative." Peridot growled, glancing at the hole.

"Hey guys?" Lapis Lazuli called, flying away from one that tugged on her dress. "These don't have gems…"

"Then the mother must be near!" Jasper grunted. She punch one that tried to sneak up on her.

"We should destroy the threat immediately, before any humans get hurt." Peridot said.

Connie gasped and leapt up. "Can I help?! Can I? Can I?"

"Connie," Lapis smiled, landing gracefully beside her, "until you learn to control your gem, you gotta leave saving the world to us, ok?"

"Ok…" Connie grumbled. She suddenly screamed in terror and ran to her room. She tried to push a centipeddle off her bookshelf and Jasper happily destroyed it for her. "Huh?! How is this possible?!"

The gems glanced up to see Connie holding out a new book of her favorite series. "But I thought the author stopped making them!"

"We heard that too, and since it's your favorite-" Lapis was interrupted by Peridot squealing, "We forced the author to write more! They were hastily put together…"

"Well, she probably felt scared that I had my fist to her head." Jasper shrugged.

"Ahem, we politely asked her to…." Lapis growled, "... after I showed that we helped protect the world-"

"Don't you mean Beach City?" Connie asked.

"Same thing."

"It was my idea." Jasper smirked.

"No, it was everyone's-" Peridot was cut off by Jasper's glare.

"This is amazing, guys!" Connie cried. "Let's see, chapter one…" The girl's chest suddenly started to glow and she dropped the book.

"Quick, summon your weapon!" Lapis cried.

"How?!" Connie gasped.

"Don't force it… I think? Am I right?" Peridot asked, not having a weapon except her metal powers. Jasper nodded.

"Also, don't puke!" Lapis called.

"Ugh, gross." Jasper muttered.

Connie's glow faded suddenly and they all gave a sigh.

"Aw… Can someone show me how to use their weap-"

"ME! ME FIRST! ME!" Peridot squealed.

"Okay, sure…" Connie blushed.

* * *

"Peridot?"

"Yes, Connie?"

"You… have a weapon, right?"

The gem glared at her. Suddenly, a metal pole from the beach flew into the gem's hand. "Yes."

"The way my metal powers work is based on my will power. Like this rock," Peri kicked a nearby rock and it rolled down the hill. "if I don't have enough will to use my strength… it will fail me."

* * *

Connie threw a rock in the air and tried to punch it away, resulting in her knuckles stinging and bleeding slightly.

"Did Peri tell you about the rock thing?" Lapis groaned.

"Yeah! I gotta be strong willed, like a rock!" Connie cried. Lapis laughed and used part of her water that was in her gem to wash away the blood and winced as tears grew in Connie's eyes. "Sorry… When I use my powers… It just  
happens with my emotions, usually I'm calm..."

* * *

"So I have to be tough and calm at the same time?" Connie asked.

"I just think about how I'm gonna punch a stupid smirk of my enemy's face." Connie frowned at Jasper as her helmet appeared. "That's how I do it."

Connie face palmed.

* * *

"I think we should recreate the scene I was in… Okay?"

The gems nodded.

"Okay… Jasper and Peridot were over there, and Lapis was by the bookcase…" She moved them. "Lapis.. you had your arms crossed and still do… good job."

"Thanks." Lapis grunted.

"Peridot, you had your foot over here…" Connie moved it. "Yeah!"

"I don't think it works this way, Connie…" Peridot said, giving a sad smile.

"And Jasper," Connie scrunched her face up and Jasper frowned. "Exactly."

"Okay…" Connie said, flipping open the book. "Blah, blah, thanks, blah, blah, chapter one," She glanced at her chest… nothing. She gave a whimper. "Maybe I'm not a Crystal Temp…"

"Don't be silly, Connie." Lapis said. "Of course you are!"

"You're really fun to help homeworkwith my calculations and such, and to read with, and hang around with… Even when your gem is being a clod…" Peri frowned at Lapis' growl. "I said that wrong… Connie, you're one of us,  
okay? You're a Crystal Temp, cause when it comes down to it… you have temper like the rest of us when you need it."

"Yeah…" Connie whispered. "Even if my gem doesn't work, I... still have my books!" The girl hugged the book close and her gem glowed.

They all gasped and Connie's weapon, a shield made of yellow lighting appeared. "Whoa…" Peri gasped.

"Lightning shield…Cool!" Connie yelled, bouncing. The shield then rocketed off and hit the bookshelf, knocking it over. Lapis giggled and snorted while Peridot gaped.

"I summon my powers by reading?!" Connie gasped.

"What did this author do?!" Peridot wondered, snatching the book away.

The house rumbled suddenly and Connie fell back in suprise, seeing the dark shadow of the mother Centipeddle.

"It's the mother!" Jasper yelled. The gems ran outside but Lapis shoved Connie inside. "Stay here, okay?"

"No way!" Connie cried. While the gems were fighting, Connie shoved the new books in the box Lars had given her.

The gems dodged a acid attack and hid behind a hand statue. They all winced in fear as acid dripped down it.

"Hey! Leave them alone!" Connie screamed.

"Connie, no!" The gems yelled.

The hum gem hybrid ran from the monster and Connie read and read. She skimmed the whole book! She read another one, but no use. Her brain hurt.

She screamed when the monster came at her. She dodged it's attack but her book wasn't so lucky. "NO!"

She wiped away tears and whispered, "Lisa… always stays tall… Lisa always fights on!" She turned to the monster and her gem sparked with electricity. "LISA… ALWAYS… WIN!" She screeched. The bolt from her chest sent  
the monster on fire.

"Gems, weapons!" Jasper yelled.

They obliged. They fought the monster til it's gem was there. It had been poofed…

Connie sadly buried the smashed book. She wiped away tears.

"Connie… are you crying?" Lapis whispered. The girl nodded in defeat. "Yes I am, Lapis… Yes I am."

"Guess your powers don't come from reading…" The ocean gem said, plopping down next to her.

"Of course they don't come from reading. You'll figure out a way to activate your gem, Connie." Peridot said.

"In your own… Connie way." Jasper laughed.

Connie giggled then grabbed her head. "Ugh, I read too much…" The human gem fell fast asleep suddenly in exhaustion and collapsed into Lapis' arms behind her. The Crystal Temps smiled softly at one another, and hugged thier little  
Connie close… 


	2. Electric Cannon

"Mr. Fryman! Bits, please!" Connie cried, running up to the stand with Lapis not far behind.

"Connie, we're closed." Mr. Fryman laughed.

"She wants the bits!" Lapis protested. "The bits! The bits!"

Connie joined in, pounding on the table. "THE BITS! THE BITS!"

"Okay! Okay! I'll make you some fry bits!" The man cried. "Easy on the counter."

He gave her a bag and the girls nodded in thanks.

"I could always make you regular fries…"

"Just the bits, thank you!" Connie called.

She and Lapis walked together. "Lapis, can we fly to the sun today? It looks closer than it usually is… We can make it!" Connie giggled.

Lapis knew this was just a trick for her and Connie to go for a fly and was about to make her wings when she saw a second sun that was huge.

"W-what?! Oh no!" Lapis cried. "What is that doing here?!"

"What do you-" Lapis grabbed the girl's arm and pulled her away. "My bits!" Connie yelled, realizing she had dropped them.

* * *

"This is bad… really bad." Jasper whispered.

Peridot glanced at it through a telescope. "Its ginormous!"

"Jasper! Peridot!" Lapis yelled. Connie was pulled after her.

"We saw." Peridot snarled. "Where were you?"

"I was helping Connie get fry bits! Did you want her to be bored?" Lapis asked, releasing Connie's hand.

"What is that?!" Connie gasped.

"A Red Eye… It's gonna crush us!" Peridot exsplained.

"The only thing that had the power to destroy it was Yellow Diamond's electric cannon…" Jasper said.

"My mother?" Connie whispered softly, glancing at her gem.

"This would be easy if Yellow were here!" Peridot cried.

"She's not here. We need another way!" Lapis said.

"Oh! My dad probably has it!" Connie cried.

The gems tried to sugarcoat their thoughts.

"Uh, Doug is… nice, Connie, but Yellow was very protective of her things… She wouldn't trust a mere human with the cannon…" Peridot said.

"Your dad is… a mess…" Lapis said.

"LAPIS! We don't insult people like that!" Jasper growled.

"Oh, you're one to talk!" Lapis laughed.

"He's kept it safe, I know it." Connie said.

"Okay. But I'm gonna destroy it with brute force!" Jasper announced. Her helmet appeared.

"Jasper… I'm the one with wings…" Lapis said but she was already running. The gem fell right off the cliff. They winced. "I'M OK!" They heard her yell.

"I… I'm gonna go…" Connie whispered.

* * *

Connie ran up to the police station. "Dad? Dad!" She yelled, banging on a police car. "Dad! We gotta save the world! Get up!" The girl crawled on the roof and started to jump when she slipped and fell on her back, setting off  
the car alarm.

A man who looked a lot like her ran out from the station. He held out his flash light and almost threw it until he saw who it was. "Connie?"

"Dad!" The girl yelled.

They hugged. Doug turned of the car alarm. "What are you doing here so late at night?"

"The sun went down a hour ago…" Connie blushed.

"Oh, so it did! I've… had a long day."

The girl smiled. "I need you to help me save the world! I need Mom's electric cannon to blow up that eyeball!"

"Eyeball?" Doug asked. They saw Lapis flying Jasper back to the beach. "That… looks like a magic thing. The gems told me not to get involved with those."

"But I need that cannon!"

"Hm… come on, kiddo. I have a idea…"

* * *

"It's… in there?" Connie gasped. Doug nodded. They look at the storage shed.

"If anywhere, its there."

The man helped his daughter in and she gasped in wonder. "It's like a Dad museum…"

After finding many things that could be a cannon, she saw a box of cds. "Dad! I didn't know you played!"

"Oh yeah! I used to be a one man band before I joined the force." Doug said.

"Really?"

"Really. I traveled everywhere, and when I played a concert and no one came except for… your mother."

Connie stopped moving for a moment then continued. "We were always together after that. Until she gave up her physical form to bring you into the world. I don't know what a magic lady like her ever saw in a plain old dope like me."  
Doug laughed.

Connie suddenly heard the shatter of glass and glanced down at the photo of her Dad reading out loud with a goofy smile and a yellow woman who laughed in the picture. "Dad, I broke a photo…"

"That's okay, if every book was perfect, we wouldn't have poetry."

There was a sudden yellow glow and the girl turned to see a cannon. "I found it!"

"Really?!"

"Yeah! I need a rope of some kind…"

Doug handed her and extension cord connected to another and another after that and so on. Connie quickly tied the extension cord around the electric canon.

"I'm gonna pull!" Doug called back as he started up the engine. With one big pull, the car successfully pulled the canon out of the shed along with everything in front of it.

* * *

Connie glanced out the window. "Is it going to be okay?"

Doug shrugged. "If every book were perfect,"

"We wouldn't have poetry!" The father and daughter laughed.

"Can we go any faster?" The girl asked.

"This is as fast as it will go!" Doug cried.

"Can we put in your cd? I want to listen!" Connie insisted.

Doug blushed while Connie put it in. "I know I'm not that tall, I know I'm not that smart, but let me drive my car into your heart, let me drive my car into your heart!" The disk sang while Connie hummed along.

* * *

They soon arrived at the beach and Lapis cried out, "We're saved!"

"I was doing… fine…" Jasper huffed.

Connie giggled and pulled out the cannon.

"We have to use it now!" Lapis said.

"I don't know how to use it! It was Yellow's!" Peridot cried when they glanced at her.

"How do we-"

"Your gem!" Peridot gasped. "Your gem is Yellow Diamond's, only you can open it."

Lapis put Connie on top of the cannon but it didn't work. "Huh."

"Come on, work, activate, fire, go!" Connie pleaded with the cannon. "We need you… You're not useless."

Doug gave a sigh and touched her shoulder. "It's okay, Connie… We'll figure something out…"

"Right…" Connie wiped away a tear. "If every book were perfect, we wouldn't have poetry…"

The cannon suddenly opened and the gems gasped. Connie flung herself on top and tried to raise it.

"Connie!" Lapis grabbed her ankles and flew up, pulling with all her strength.

"It's happening!" Peridot yelled, hoisting it up. Jasper gave the final lift, "BRACE YOURSELVES!"

A electric shot suddenly came out that formed into a woman and the Red eye exploded.

"We did it!" Lapis cheered.

"How did you do it?" Peridot gasped.

"I said what Dad always says." Connie shrugged.

"The book thing?" Peridot asked.

"Poetry." Jasper whispered.

"Yellow…" Doug sighed, tears in his eyes.

The tide suddenly came in and started to pull the police car to the sea. "My car!"

"It's okay, Dad. If every book was perfect, we wouldn't have-"

"I work in that car!"

Connie ran after Doug to help. "Wait up, Dad!" 


	3. Not a Normal Backpack

Connie waited patiently for the postman but he hadn't come yet…

Suddenly, she saw Jamie and ran to him. "Jamie! You came!"

"Of course! Hold on." Jamie pulled out a loaf of bread. "Did you order a loaf of bread with a stamp on it?"

"No."

"Did you order a jury summons for R.J. Finkle?"

Connie shook her head. "I'm Connie!"

"Oh right! Here you are, Connie Universe!" Jamie said, giving her a package.

"Horray! This is gonna help me save the world!" Connie laughed.

"But isn't it just a backpack?" Jamie asked.

"Just a backpack?! No!" Connie huffed. "Jasper, Lapis, and Peri say I shouldn't go on adventures until I've harnessed my powers that can electrocute things,"

"That's reasonable…" Jamie said.

"But there's other ways I can help!" Connie cried.

"With a regular, normal, everyday… backpack?"

"Uh-huh!"

"Do you know how you can save my world?" Jamie asked. He showed her a clipboard. "Sign here, please."

She did so.

"Barb yells at me if I don't get signatures."

"That's horrible." There was a noise and Connie glanced at the Beach house that glowed. "Jasper, Lapis, and Peri are back!"

* * *

Connie nearly trip over herself in surprise. The gems were covered in feathers. "Hey Connie." Jasper waved.

Peridot heaved a giant egg to the fridge while Lapis protested. "Peridot, we don't need that!"

"Yes we do! We gems protect all life!" Peridot attempted to close the fridge. She did so and they heard the egg crack. Peridot squeaked in horror.

Lapis frowned then saw Connie staring. "We fought a giant bird…" She exsplained. "We've gotta get going again…"

"What?!" Connie cried.

Lapis displayed a small statue. "We have to place this Moon Goddess Statue on the top of the Lunar Sea Spire before midnight. Without it, the whole place will fall apart! Oh, Connie, you should have seen the spire in its heyday!"  
Lapis sighed. Her gem glowed and water came out. She closed her eyes then opened them again. The water looked like a mirror. "It was an oasis for Gems on Earth. It's abandoned now, but we can still save it with this statue!" She touched  
her head and fell back into Jasper who looked at her with concern.

"Are you…"

"Fine." Lapis grunted.

Connie bit her lip then gasped. "Oh! Perfect!"

"What do you mean, Connie?" Peridot asked, while she ran to Lapis to help her stand.

"Ta da!" Connie cried.

The gems saw her display her new, brown and rather boring backpack.

"Wow… that's something…" Lapis whispered.

"Yeah! I can carry the statue in it!"

Peridot frowned. "Connie, the probability of you surviving is-"

"I'm a Crystal Temp too!" Connie protested, showing her gem.

"Let her come, Peridot! Please?" Lapis asked, clasping her hands together.

"It would be a teaching experience…" Jasper said.

"I… Fine." Peridot sighed in defeat.

Connie cried out in triumph and raced to her room. "I'll get extra supplies!"

"But-" Peridot started, but Jasper smiled, "Let her go."

Connie grabbed a ton of stuff and put them in the many, many pockets of the bag along with the statue.

"Connie!"

"Coming!" She cried.

"Oh my stars, did you bring your whole room?!" Peridot gasped seeing the giant bag.

"It's huge!" Lapis laughed.

"Come on! Let's go!" Jasper said.

* * *

They were inside the warp and Connie floated upward. Peridot watched her head go through the warp and grabbed her. "Keep your head in! You'll blow up if you don't!" Peridot creid. Connie fell to the ground when they reached the  
spire.

"This is… so run down." She whispered. Lapis nodded. "It… wasn't like this a hundred years ago…"

"This thing is falling apart…" Jasper gasped.

"I can see that…" Connie whispered. The ground suddenly cracked beneath her. Peridot yelled out in surprise and the metal pole that she always had with her wrapped around Connie and brought her back.

"We're taking Connie home! Now! Right now!" Peridot said, hugging Connie. "She is clearly not ready!"

Connie frowned. "I'm really trying!"

Peridot released her. "I suppose you are correct…"

The gems headed for the spire. They came to halt at the end of a cliff only a few feet away from a doorway to the sea spire.

"Why have we stopped?" Lapis asked. She made her wings and attempted to fly but Jasper grabbed her foot.

"Don't! Lapis, this has powerful magic…It can suck you down!"

"So we can't get over there? Ugh, what an annoyance." Peridot growled.

"Oh! I got it!" Connie took out some sweaters from her backpack. Connie tied one sleeve on a sweater to the sleeve of another. She threw it out to the spire like a rope while hanging onto one end of it. It went through a small opening  
above the doorway and circled back to her. Connie held onto both ends of the chain of sweaters. She took a deep breath before jumping.

"Connie!" Lapis screamed. Peridot grabbed her before she tried to fly after the girl. "Wait… There is a slim chance she survived…"

Connie pulled on the sweaters and ran up the wall. Connie climbed into the doorway heavily panting with a look of triumph on her face.

"Yay, Connie! Let's do this!" Lapis creid. Her water made a whip that tied around the opening. It grabbed its mistress and her friends and swung them up.

"Connie, that was horrifying!" Peridot yelled.

"Sorry." The girl whispered.

"But… that was pretty spectacular… overlooking the horrific parts." The gem hybrid beamed

* * *

The four gems walked along while Lapis gasped at the ruin. "Oh…" She sighed.

"I know…" Peridot whispered.

"It used to be stunning here…" Jasper grunted. "The statue will fix this…"

Lapis cried out in panic and a fist of water smacked down on a creature climbing on a statue.

"Ha, ha… sorry." She whispered to Peridot's gaze of horror. "Lapis! This is ancient stuff! It was made long before I emerged and is sacred!"

"What was that thing?" Connie gasped.

"Crystal shrimp…" Lapis sighed.

"Can you just… kill it?" Connie asked.

"I wish. The shards on them are deadly. We can't get in direct contact." Jasper explained.

"Uh, guys?" They turned to Lapis. "It's a infestation! And we have to get through here to get to the top."

"No one freak out, I've got this." Peridot said, popping her fingers. "Lapis, if you go around to there, you can distract the shrimp with your water tricks-"

"I'm sorry," Lapis laughed. "am I some kind of circus now?"

Peridot rolled her eyes. "Jasper… you stay here, you cannot get in contact, and I'll-"

"Cheese sandwich!" Connie yelled, throwing one out. The shrimp went to them.

"How.. what… IMPOSSIBLE!" Peridot cried, pulling her star shaped hair.

"Nice one, kid." Jasper laughed.

"Yeah! That was amazing!" Lapis winked.

The gems countied onward when Lapis screamed, "Stop!"

They did and a huge amount of water burst in through the wall to thier left.

Lapis smiled at Connie. "Backpack! Backpack!" Connie laughed and looked around in the bag while Jasper and eventually Peridot chanted with Lapis.

"I have a raft!" The girl announced.

The gems cheers shortly lived when they saw it quickly float off the waterfall.

Lapis smiled weakly. "They can't all be winners." She used her powers to part the water and Connie gasped, "Why didn't you do that before?"

"You didn't ask!" Lapis joked, not revealing that she had noticed how happy Connie had been when feeling she was useful.

"Ha ha! We have arrived!" Peridot cried. "Heh heh, yes!"

Connie tried to find the statue and glanced at the moon, one minute left!

"Uh, I-"

"Connie, what's up?" Lapis asked.

"Er… Ah-ha!" Connie pulled out the statue but it was too late! The Spire crumbled.

Connie heard her tears drop into water and opened her eyes. Her brown hair grazed the top of the water and looked up to see Peridot had grabbed her and Jasper her while Lapis gasped for air to keep them all up with her wings. She groaned  
in exhaustion. They all dropped and Connie found herself with a air bubble around her. She glanced at Lapis who smiled underwater. They surfaced.

"Is everyone okay?" Jasper called. They nodded.

"I failed.." Connie sighed, treading water.

"I think we all failed at some parts of this mission, I was being too much of a good leader to see you were a good one too," Peridot said, "Jasper couldn't touch those shrimp, and Lapis here," she glared at the flying  
gem. "apparently needs to work on her strength!"

"Sorry! I can't carry all of you! I don't know how to get you all home-" Lapis was interrupted by Connie's raft surfacing.

"YES!" Connie yelled. 


	4. Together Lunch

Connieglanced at the clock, away from her new book. "It's noon… Everybody's out…. I guess it's up to me to make some lunch!"

* * *

Connie happily made four cheese sandwiches and glanced at the temple door. She knocked on it. "Peridot? Jasper? Lapis?" Nothing. She turned with a determined face.

A few minutes later, she had cut up a pizza into tiny pieces and scattered them on top of the stack. She stood on the warp pad and stared at the door, she sighed.

She then heated up some gravy and poured it on the sandwiches. "Beyond beautiful…" She muttered softly. The girl opened the back door, "Peridot? Jasper?"

She sighed and closed it. Then, carefully, she put a single stalk of parsley on top. "Done…"

Connie gazed at it. "I can't eat this alone… it's a… together lunch."

Suddenly, Jasper warped in and Connie ran up to her. "Jasper! Look!" She displayed the lunch. "With all the gravy… it's not that healthy but it's a… balanced stack?" She smiled a huge smile at the absolute cleverness  
of her pun. Jasper laughed. "Good one, squirt, but I can't stay. I have something to do." She walked to the temple door.

"What is it?" Connie asked, trotting after her.

"I have to burn this." Jasper unfurled a scroll she had in her hand. Connie saw the symbols and heard whispering. She had to touch it… She had to release it… Jasper grabbed her shoulder roughly, shaking her out of the evil trance.  
Connie took out her phone and took a picture of the thing. Jasper grabbed the phone, "I have to burn this too." She opened the temple with her gem and disappeared inside the temple. Connie cried out for her phone and she put her gem to the  
door. "Open! Oh, you never work!" She growled at her gem.

She started to walk away when the door opened.

"Ghaa! Evil monster!" Lapis cried in fear. Her water came out of her gem and Connie screamed in shock seeing it going for the lunch. "NOOO!" The water hit Connie instead.

"C-Connie?!" Lapis gasped, running to help.

"Why… did you think that was a monster?!" Connie huffed.

Lapis blushed. "Well… I had never seen that thing before…"

Connie frowned and Lapis helped her up. Peridot suddenly came through the door.

"Hey! That's my door! You were in my room?!" Lapis gasped.

"Oh, hello... Lazuli… WHAT WAS _MY STUFF_ DOING IN _YOUR_ ROOM?!" Peridot yelled, showing a tablet.

"I don't know!" Lapis creid.

"You stole it, you clod!"

"Did not!"

"Being the wonderful and kind gem I am, I'll let it slide, Lapis." Peridot sighed. "Oh, I also dried off your room, you're welcome."

"You did WHAT?! I'm a water gem! Almost my whole room is water!" Lapis yelled, rushing to the door.

"Lapis! Wait!" Connie cried, but the door was already closed. Peridot heard her desperate cry and turned to her.

"You look… sad." Peridot commented.

"I am. I made this together lunch to eat togeth-"

"I'm bored." Peridot said. She opened her room and went inside. "Wait! This cannot become a togther dinner!" Connie exclaimed. She slipped in before it closed. She glanced back at the door and saw it was gone. She turned  
back and saw a circular room made of metal that had small display cases around it. She saw Peridot place her tablet in a case and the small gem smiled, "Peridot perfection."

"Hi, Peridot!" Connie giggled. The gem gasped and turned. "Connie?! You know it's dangerous here! Get out!" The door opened behind her to reveal the home. Connie shook her head. "We're gonna have a nice lunch even  
if I'm sweaty!" Connie sprinted around the room with the lunch after Peridot who started to run away when the human gem slipped. Connie fell off the edge. "CONNIE!" Peridot yelled.

Connie screamed in horror but soon fell on a platform. Rubbing her bottom, she saw she was surrounded by water. The girl heard a pouring of water and flinched. She looked up to see Lapis fluttering over her.. "Oh, hi Connie. Did you  
fall of Peri's room? Peridot gets mad because all her stuff is here, but it falls off!"

"Stuff like what?" Connie asked.

Lapis flew down to her. "Stuff like… you!" The gem playfully pushed Connie in the water. Connie laughed and swam back, wringing out her hair. "I can't believe Peridot dried everything off, isn't that silly?"

"It looks pretty wet…"

"You're a sweetie!" Lapis laughed, wrinkling her nose. She then saw the lunch. "Oh, what's that?"

"Together lunch!" Connie announced.

Lapis frowned. "... That… actually looks pretty good…"

Connie smiled. Lapis suddenly tried to grab it but Connie took its away. "No! This was made for everyone! That's why it's called together lunch!"

"But Connie!" Lapis protested.

"No!"

Lapis frowned again. "I want that food, Connie!"

The girl cried out as Lapis tried to grab it once more. Connie leapt to a corridor and ran. She suddenly ran upside down and was confused but got her footing again.

"You can't out run me, Connie!" Lapis chuckled. "I can fly, remember?" The gem landed in front of the girl who expertly slid between her legs.

"Just… wait!" Connie yelled, landing on the final platform. Lapis leapt after her swiftly. "Come back! You can't run forever!"

"You're missing the point!" Connie yelled. She jumped again and grabbed onto a pole of some sort.

"Connie! Stop! Wait!" Lapis cried.

Peridot entered from another side and gasped. "There you are!"

Connie smiled. "One more to go!"

"You really shouldn't be in here, this is the Crystal Heart. It's connected to the most dangerous areas of the temple! Hold on tight, and don't look down." Peridot said.

Connie glanced down and saw endless darkness. She slipped and started to fall.

Screaming, she fell but then saw a yellow room filled with clouds. "Oh, this isn't that-" but she kept falling and screamed again. "Nevermind!"

She landed and saw a room full of bubbled gems. Then she turned to see Jasper snap her phone in half and toss in in the a pit of lava. Jasper bubbled the scroll which started burning.

"Aw…" Connie whispered. She got off and Lapis and Peridot landed beside her. "We're getting you out of here." Peridot said.

"Come on!" Lapis whispered.

Connie looked at them and smiled. "This is great! Now we can eat!"

Jasper gasped in surprise but controlled the bubble.

"Let's just go home, and eat lunch, please?" Connie begged.

"Connie… run! Please, run!" Jasper struggled to contain the smoke.

"But-" Connie was interrupted when the smoke escaped. It expanded and the gems got out thier weapons.

"Force it back!" Jasper yelled, flipping away from it trying to smash her.

Jasper smashed into it with her helmet but the evil saw Connie shaking behind her. It attempted to grab the girl but Lapis landed in front of her, slapping it with water. "Get away from her!"

Peridot gave a war cry and swung around her metal pole, bending it sharper. She attempted to stab it but it went around her and slammed into Connie and the lunch. Connie yelled in pain.

"CONNIE!" The gems cried.

The girl grabbed her head and looked up. "W-what happened?"

The meal suddenly started to shake and she cried out as the lunch grew into a monster.

It attempted to smash Connie but Peridot hit it with her pole.

"Heh, heh! I got it!" Peridot cried. It suddenly pinned her to the wall with gravy and she struggled. "CLOD!"

It hardened its push on Connie who cried out in fear with tears in her eyes. "I didn't want this to happen! I just wanted us to eat like a family!"

"Connie! You have to run!" Jasper called. "It's gonna kill you!" She attempted to smash into it but Lapis cried out and grabbed Jasper's arm, as it attempted to hurt the big gem.

The monster smashed Jasper into a wall.

Lapis used her wings to fly over it but it slapped the woman aside.

Seeing Lapis fall to the ground, Connie pushed harder. "That's... enough! I... don't care if you... are delicious!" She shoved the beast to the lava. "I made you to bring us together…" She growled. "not to tear us  
apart!" She punched the meal into the lava. Her cheeks were red with energy.

Lapis had gained consciousness and helped Jasper and Peridot out. They gathered around the lava. "I'm sorry…" Connie sighed. Peridot and Lapis put their hands on her shoulders. "I guess I dream too big…"

Jasper met Lapis and Peridot'd eyes and they nodded to each other in agreement of something.

Together, the Crystal Temps and Connie Universe made another together lunch… It was twice the size of Connie's old one.

They gazed upon it with awe… and a bit of sadness. They had finally made… the ultimate togther lunch.

"I can't eat this…" Connie sighed.

"Breakfast for lunch?" Lapis suggested. They all nodded.

"It _did_ try to kill us." Jasper said. 


	5. Frybo

"Where is it? Oh, where it?" Connie wondered, "I'm usually so organized!"

Peridot walked in from her room with 6 gem shards in a bubble. "There were seven… I was certain there were seven!"

Connie glanced up from searching. "Peridot, have you seen my backpack? It's very important."

Peridot looked up from calculating something on her tablet and shook her head. "I'm afraid I haven't. However, I'm looking for something much more important than a silly backpack, have you seen a gem shard around? I must retrieve it."

"These shards have a powerful partial consciousness that has been harnessed by…"

While Peridot spoke, failing her arms around in great detail, Connie got to thinking…. _It wasn't in the kitchen… or my room… I need it to take my library books back in it! Hm… after searching here, Peridot came in and…_ Connie glanced  
up to see Peridot still talking. _Oh no! This must be important! I can't start listening now… I'd be lost! … Like my backpack…_

"And over all, the world would perish in flames." Peridot finished.

Connie bit her lip. "... Yeah…"

"Okay! I'm going to town and search there! The people might've seen it." Peridot said, slamming the front door closed.

"Well, I guess I should look for the shard here." Connie shrugged. She turned to see her backpack, but it was moving!

"What the-" The backpack ran away. "Hey!" Connie yelled, running after it.

She grabbed the bag soon enough and held it to her back. "You'll hurt my books!" She dumped out the bag and a crystal shard fell out.

"Huh? Is this what Peri was looking for? I'd better bring it to her!"

* * *

Connie ran down the bordwalk yelling out for Peridot. She stopped when she heard a cry of panic. "What is that?"

Suddenly, a boy in a fry costume ran right into her. "Help me!" The boy cried. Connie gasped and he stood. The boy was being attacked by seagulls. "I'M NOT FRIES!" He yelled, taking off the head of the costume and shooing  
away the birds. He felt Connie staring and glanced at her. "Oh, did I know you over? I'm sorry, I'm-" Connie took his hand that hoisted her up but the door to the fries stand opened. A man who looked like the boy gasped. "Gah, where's  
your face Frybo? Being part of the Fryman family means you gotta sell fries.." The two kids stared. "and be my son, which you are. So, you're already halfway there." The boy's father said. "Keep at it, Frybo!"

"It's Pee-" He closed the door. "dee…" Peedee sighed. He turned to Connie.

"What's your name?" He asked.

"Oh! Er, I'm Connie! Connie Universe." Connie blushed. She was very shy and often stayed at home… She didn't go to school with the gems and her father looking after her.

"Nice to meet you, Connie…" Peedee sighed. "When I told my dad I wanted to be part of the Fryman family business, I didn't think it meant being stuck in a sweaty old costume." He put on the head. "Things used to  
be different, Connie, nothing to worry about back then except making myself dizzy on the old seahorse ride at Funland."

Connie gave a small smile. "W-was that a joke?" She tried to force out a laugh but it didn't work.

"I wish there was a way for this costume to do its job without me in it." Peedee whispered.

Connie glanced at her hand which still held the glowing shard. "I… um… might have a way…"

"How?! You gotta tell me!" Peedee cried. Connie hesitated but showed him the shard. She slipped it into the costume and watched it move around for a moment. Peedee gasped in awe while Connie backed away slowly. _Is this a good idea?_ She  
wondered

"Stop!" The girl yelled. The suit did. Peedee gasped, "Uh, stand up!" It did that too.

"Do a little dance?" Connie asked.

The thing suddenly grew legs made of fries, making Connie and Peedee recoil. It did as told. Mr. Fryman came out and saw it. Peedee hid behind Connie. "Woah-ho, all right! It's about ti— I mean, good job, buddy! That's what I'm talking  
about, Frybo! Keep it up!"

Peedee watched him go inside. "Free, I'm free!"

Connie gave a nervous smile. She had a bad feeling…

"You've got the job, Frybo, let's shake on it!" Peedee showed his hand but Frybo picked him up and literally shook him.

"Are you okay?!" Connie gasped.

"Ok, no more shaking. Put me down!" The suit did. "Just, go make people eat fries." Peedee said. He watched Frybo run off. Connie tried to run after it but Peedee grabbed her arm. "Let's go be kids!" He cried.  
Connie relented and let him drag her away.

Connie laughed in joy as the jellyfish shook her. "I forgot how silly these were!"

Peedee didn't find her joy in the seahorse. He got very bored, very quick. "This seahorse used to make me so happy. Now it's just giving me whiplash. I feel like there's just no point to it, you know what I mean?"

Connie was too busy laughing to respond.

"You'll understand when you have a job." The boy sighed.

"I do have a job, I protect humanity from magic and monsters and stuff!" Connie said.

Peedee shook his head in confusion but accepted it. "I mean a real job, that you get paid for."

"I'm paid in the smiles across the town's faces." Connie replied calmly.

"I don't see anyone smiling." Peedee sighed. "You pick up a job to buy a house, or raise kids, or to... impress your dad. You work away your life, and what does it get you?"

"A… good feeling that you did justice?"

"No! You get cash. Cash that can't buy back what the job takes... not if you rode every seahorse in the world." The children looked out at the distance.

"Do you want to ride the jellyfish?"

They suddenly heard a scream. "That came from the fry shop!" Peedee gasped. He and Connie ran to the shop.

They got to the shop and gasped. Frybo was inside and forcing fries into innocent pepole's mouth.

"We didn't tell him to do that, did we tell him to do that?!" Peedee gasped.

"Please! No more fries!" Mr. Smiley cried, but the monster didn't listen.

"Frybo, stop!" Connie growled. The thing turned to the girl and she saw blue and red veins on it. She flinched involuntarily. Frybo picked up her friend Lars and threw him at her. She and Peedee ducked. "Why isn't it listening?!"  
Peedee yelled.

"I don't know!" Connie cried.

Suddenly, Mr. Fryman came out. "Peedee, where's all this coming from?!" The monster grabbed him with fries. "Ah, I get it, I pushed you too hard. I thought you wanted to be as good a Fryman as you could be, you're a tough kid  
for putting up with it as long as you did!"

"Dad!" Peedee cried, trying to run and help but Connie grabbed him. "Are you crazy?! It'll kill you in a instant!"

"W-what are you going to do?!" Peedee asked.

"My job!" Connie said proudly.

Frybo chucked Peedee's unconscious father on top of them. Peridot ran into the scene after hearing the screams and gasped. "Connie! Did you put the missing shard in that monstrosity?!"

Connie nodded. "I've never had a friend before! I wanted to help! I'm so sorry!"

Peridot gasped in horror. "CONNIE! Oh, you've truly messed it up now! Didn't you hear me talk about the many, many explosions?!"

"Wait, what?!" Connie cried.

"You weren't listening! Nothing can just blow up!" Peridot growled. She took out her metal pole and stabbed Frybo in the eye. It burst with ketchup on her. She dropped the other shards while Peedee rolled off his father. Connie ran to  
Peridot and tried to help her up.

"Ugh! Ketchup! My one and only weakness!" Peridot yelled.

Connie noticed the gem shards and gasped in realization.

Meanwhile, Peedee was crying over his father when Frybo cornered him. "G-go away!" The boy sobbed, defending them with a plank. His father awoke and gasped. "Peedee?"

"You are awful! I hate you! I've always hated you!" Peedee yelled at the monster.

"You've always hated Frybo?" Fryman gasped.

Frybo then disarmed the boy, who cowered in fear with his father. Suddenly, a backpack hit Frybo in the face. "Connie!" The Frymans gasped. "What is going on?!" Peridot groaned.

Connie had her pants and undershirt on but the rest of her things were lined up like a battlefield. "Come at me, I dare you." She hissed to Frybo. It took her offer and charged. "ATTACK!"

The garments beat Frybo down. Connie ran up and grabbed the shard.

"Connie?! You got huge!" Peridot gasped, still blinded by ketchup and touching Fryman's face.

Later, Connie, the Crystal Temps, Fryman, and Peedee watched solemnly as Connie's garments put Frybo in the ocean.

"Why are we here again?" Jasper whispered.

"I… don't know." Peridot shrugged.

"You were great, Frybo." Fryman whispered. "The kids today just didn't understand. Now, they never will."

"Weren't people scared of it before he attacked them?" Peridot asked. Connie shushed her.

"It's time to send him off." Fryman whispered. He lit Frybo on fire and they watched him burn. "As greasy in death as he was in life."

Peedee glanced up at his father. "Dad? Uhm... I'll, are you going to get another costume?"

The father chuckled and put a arm around Peedee. "I don't need another Frybo, I got the fry man."

The tender scene was interrupted when Lapis used her powers to shove the remains of Frybo out to sea in a massive wave. "Woo hoo! Goodbye forever!" She cried.

They all glared at her.

"What? We all agree that was horrifying."

They nodded in agreement. 


	6. Dog Fingers

Connie and her father Doug happily washed a vehicle with Mayor Dewey's head on it.

"So, why are we doing this again?" Connie asked, scrubbing the hubs. "It's not exactly your expert job…"

"Well, Mayor Dewey has no one else to do it." Doug explained. "Plus we get political favors."

"I don't know what that means… but I like it." Connie said with a wink.

"Besides, isn't this fun?" Doug asked

Connie smirked. "I know how to make it even more fun…" The girl grabbed a hose and sprayed her father. He laughed and sprayed her back. They laughed together and chased each other.

Mayor Dewey came out and gave a growl, "Whoa! I'm not paying for father-daughter bonding here!"

Connie turned and suddenly, a huge amount of water came from the hose and at the mayor. She gasped in horror. "I-I'm so sorry, sir! I didn't even-"

"Universe! Learn to control that kid!" Mayor Dewey cried, wiping off water.

"Heh, sorry, Mayor! Connie, she's on the house!" Doug laughed, putting his arm around Connie.

"On the house, eh?" The mayor asked, looking at the van rather than Connie. "I like the way you think, Universe." He got in his van and drove away. They listened to the siren fade away.

"Political favors!" Connie cried, noticing her father was upset. Doug laughed and hugged Connie. "You little rascal! Enough hose fights!"

"Okay, okay!" Connie giggled. Suddenly, a spray of water hit them. Doug looked down to see a little blue dog. The duo ran around but no matter where they hid, the water always found them.

"What is with that dog?!" Doug gasped. The dog suddenly glowed and turned to Lapis, who laughed. "That was awesome. That Mayor is too self absorbed for my taste, he deserved that hose wash."

"Lapis! You did that?!" Connie cried.

"Heh, heh, yeah. Sorry I got you in trouble." They hugged and Doug laughed nervously. "Uh, pretty cool, Lapis…"

"Really cool!" Connie bounced. "I wish I could shapeshift like you!"

"Yeah, well you probably could…" Lapis laughed. "You do have a gem."

"Magic stuff." Doug assumed. "Should I get out of here? Is there going to be an explosion?"

Connie laughed, "It's fine, Dad!"

"Yeah, it's fine." Lapis said, shape-shifting into Connie. Doug gasped in horror.

* * *

Peridot was working on a invention when Lapis ran up. "Peri! Look!"

Lapis shape-shifted into a seal.

Connie giggled. "More! More!"

The gem obliged and transformed to a wolf. She howled. Then transformed to a bird and perched on Connie's hair. "Cool!" The girl laughed.

Peridot groaned. "Lazuli, you're over doing it!"

"But this is the first time in a long time anyone has seen my shapeshifting, and appreciated it!" Lapis cried.

"Just because you can shapeshift, doesn't mean you should." Peri grumbled.

"Can you shape-shift?" Connie asked.

"W-what? Er… I… um…" Peridot flushed. Lapis noticed and quickly interrupted. "Er, of course I can!" She shape shifted into Peri. "There is nothing the great Peridot can't do!"

Peridot mouthed a thanks to Lapis while Connie giggled. "I want to do that!"

"Connie, shape-shifting… you got to take it slow…" Lapis said, turning back to her normal self.

Peridot blushed again. "Uh, I'm gonna… go outside." She left them alone.

"Let's start with something easy…" Lapis said, thinking to herself.

"Like that dog you turned into?" Connie asked.

"Yeah, that works." Lapis shrugged. "Now follow my lead. First, think of what you wanna be, and then, just shake it out." She turned into the dog. "See?"

Connie nodded. "I want to be… a… dog!" She breathed, tensing up her body.

Lapis turned back to herself and walked to Connie. "Here… A bit less tense." Lapis help Connie gently put her arms down and smooth out her face.

"Now, feel it."

Connie tried again but couldn't get it. She sighed in defeat.

"Hey, that's okay!" Lapis said. "You tried."

Connie nodded. "But one more try!" She tried again and suddenly heard a puppy bark. She glanced at her finger and gasped. A little white puppy was there!

Lapis laughed while Connie gazed at it. "I did it!"

* * *

"Dad! Dad!" Connie ran up to her father at the station.

"Oh, hey kiddo!" Doug laughed.

"Look!" Connie displayed her puppy finger and Doug gasped in horror.

"I shapeshifted my finger into a dog!"

"Oh… is that something you can do now? Um… cool, Connie, v-very cool."

* * *

"And that'll be ten dollars, Connie." Lars said.

Connie smiled. "Okay, here's five bucks…" She gave it with her normal hand. "And five more!" The puppy finger barked at her.

Lars and Sadie gasped.

"Cute!" Lars said. He pet the finger which barked. "Are you… making it do that?"

"Nah, it does what it wants!" Connie laughed.

"Does it?" Sadie chuckled and poked the puppy. It bit her. She yelped in pain and Connie gasped. "Bad boy! Bad!" She told the finger.

"Maybe it just wants to play." Lars shrugged.

"Yeah! Poor little guy has no friends." Connie whimpered.

"Kinda like you?" Sadie asked, but Lars elbowed her.

Connie conjured up four more dog fingers and laughed in triumph.

* * *

Connie hid her fingers behind her back as she walked to the fry shop.

She ran up to see Peedee. "Peedee! You were the deep frier now?!"

"I sure do!" The boy laughed.

"Great! I need some fry bits, please!" Connie laughed.

Mr. Fryman walked up behind him. "Connie, I take my job seriously, please use the actual menu." Peedee groaned.

"The bits, please!" Connie cried again.

Mr. Fryman sighed. "Alright listen, it'll be over sooner if you just give her what she wants."

Peedee sighed and went to go work the frier.

"This isn't for me, sir, it's for these little guys!" Connie cried, displaying her fingers.

The man gasped while Peedee walked up. "Here are your fry…" He dropped the thing in the counter seeing the dogs. "...bits…."

"I can't look away." Mr. Fryman muttered.

"Connie, that is freakish." Peedee gasped.

"No it's not. It's natural." Connie replied. She put her dogs in the fry bits and they chomped happily. She then shook her other hand and five more puppies appeared. "Whoa!" The Frymans cried.

"You know who would love this?" Mr. Fryman asked Peedee. "Your brother! Yo, Ronaldo!"

A teenager who was on his phone glanced up. "What's up…." He saw the fingers and gasped. He shoved Peedee aside and Connie flinched. "I've gotta take a pic for Keep Beach City Weird!" He took a picture of Connie's fingers.

"What's that?" Connie gasped.

"Can I see the picture?" Connie asked. She took the phone but her puppies whined in agony. "Yikes! Sorry guys! I guess cat fingers don't function well as... fingers."

* * *

"I just… want… a snack!" Connie yelled, trying to get a plate out. Her puppies barked in protest.

Lapis suddenly flew in from the window. "Oh, good afternoon, Connie." She frowned. "Need some help?"

"Huh?! Uh, no…" Connie sighed.

"Okay, well, see you later." Lapis shrugged.

"Where are you going?!" Connie cried.

"We're taking the Gem Sloop out to sea to fight a living island." Lapis said calmly.

"What?!" Connie cried. She ran after Lapis, who had already flown to the boat.

She ran down to the dock and into the water to catch up to them.

"Connie! We're on the boat! Come on!" Peridot called.

Connie attempted to swim but the dogs on her fingers snapped at her. The Crystal Temps gasped. "Connie? What's going on?!" Peridot yelled.

"I turned my fingers into dogs!" Connie cried.

They could only stare.

"We gotta go help Connie, NOW!" Peridot screeched.

"We can't! This is an emergency! The world could be in grave danger if we don't go now!" Jasper cried.

They looked at Lapis and she knew what she needed to do. The gem attempted to use the water to bring Connie to them but her fingers started to bite her. Connie yelped out in pain. "Lapis! Stop!" She sobbed. "I'll figure this out!"

Lapis gasped in horror. "B-but-"

"There is nothing you can do for me, Lapis! You guys have to go!" Connie insisted.

"Lapis! You clod! This is all your fault!" Peridot cried in tears. Lapis felt hopeless and Jasper grabbed the gem's shoulder. "Gems, we have to go now. We will help Connie the moment we get back, I swear to you." She whispered, obviously  
saddened too.

"GO!" Connie screamed, dogs biting her harder.

Lapis nodded slowly. "Okay." She choked. "But we're coming back soon!"

Connie watched the slope get pushed far, far away by Lapis's powers.

* * *

Connie ran home and let out a fresh batch of tears. The dogs growled at her but she ignored them. "ENOUGH! I don't want this anymore! I want my fingers back!" She yelled. The girl fell into a table in fear and her hand went under a lamp. The dogs  
suddenly yelped in pain. Connie noticed. She touched her head in her sad and confused state then saw a bump of a dog grow on her head. She screamed and one of her hands turned into another dog head! "Stop!" She yelled. Her foot turned to a dog and  
she fell to the floor. "Lapis! Peridot! Jasper!" She cried, more dogs growing on her body. Then she gasped in realization. "Dad."

* * *

Doug hummed along to a song as he sat in his car waiting when he heard a noise. He turned.

"Huh?! W-who's there?!"

He got his flashlight ready then saw multiple dog heads attached to a body. He gasped.

He shone the light on it and the dogs retracted for only a few seconds but revealed his frightened daughter to him. "Dad!" She sobbed.

"Connie?! What-"

"You gotta help me! The dog fingers are taking over my body!" She yelled. She cried in pain as more dogs came.

"Don't worry, sweetie, Dad's comin'!" Doug called. He grabbed Connie's dog infested body but the dogs bit him and threw the man aside.

"Dad!" Connie yelled, being pulled away by the dogs. She reached out her hand to touch her father's but the dogs pulled her away.

Doug shone his flashlight and the dogs with his daughter recoiled. "Can't you make them go away?!"

"No!" Connie cried. "My life is over! I can't go on magic adventures! I can't even open the fridge! And I'll never get to go outside and lay in the sun! Because these things hate... light! They hate light! Dad, put your flashlight on me again!"

Her father did but the dogs tried to attack. Doug thought he was going to get mauled but Connie grabbed the side of the station. "Urgh! This isn't enough!" Connie cried. She glanced up at the spotlights that were around the station if some  
criminal was trying to escape and gasped. "Turn on the spotlights!"

Doug looked at his girl with horror. "No! It's too dangerous!"

"You've got to! I'm a monster! I'm an adorable dog monster!" Connie yelled.

"No, you can't be!" Doug cried. "You're my daughter!"

"Dad, PLEASE!" Connie screamed.

Her father nodded. He slammed on a button nearby and glaring spotlights hit Connie. Doug watched all the dogs melt away, leaving the girl in thier place. Connie got up and saw the tears in her clothes then hugged her Dad. "We did it!"

Suddenly, a dog finger popped up. Connie and Doug were screaming as he pointed the flashlight to it.

* * *

Later, Connie, sat at the dock when a massive wave came hurling to shore. Soon she noticed it was the Temps who ran up to her, hugging her and apologizing over and over. Peridot looked at her hand and frowned. "They are eradicated?"

"Yep!" Connie giggled. Her smile turned to a smirk, "Who wants some Woofles for breakfast tomorrow?"

The Temps burst out laughing, for they all loved puns.


	7. Bubble Buddies

Connie felt a blush hit her cheeks as she ran down the house steps, book in hand. Suddenly, a rumble erupted from the Earth, and her book slipped from her arms.

Meanwhile, Peridot, Lapis, and Jasper walked on the beach. "I don't think these tremors of the Earth are just earthquakes, they're too frequent! It's a bad sign, I tell you, a bad sign." Peridot whispered. Suddenly, Connie's book

hit her in the head. "INVASION!" Peridot screamed while Connie ran to pick it up.

"Sorry!" Connie laughed, picking the book up.

Lapis smiled. "Where are you going?"

"Just to read!" Connie replied.

"But it's blazing hot out here…" Jasper said, cocking her head.

"I know!" Connie cried.

* * *

Connie walked slowly with her book and kept glancing up at a boy she saw nearby. He had black curls and a goofy smile on his face, he was building a sand castle but kept glancing at her too. As she passed, she looked down but a voice stopped

her.

"Hey!"

She turned to see the boy waving. She blushed then shyly waved back.

"My name's Stevan, I-I mean Steven! What's yours?" Steven asked.

The girl was so nervous, she dropped her book. The boy looked at it. Connie felt her brain flip-flop. She couldn't do this! Abort the mission! Connie was so terrified and embarrassed that she ran away.

* * *

Connie slammed the house's door closed. She then felt someone watching her and saw the three Crystal Temps. "Who were you speaking to?" Peridot asked.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about!" Connie breathed.

"That boy. Why were you talking to him?" Jasper growled.

"You saw… He's just a boy I know, except he doesn't know me. We never talked…" Connie blushed.

"Aw! You like him!" Lapis cried, grabbing Connie's face.

"I-I like everyone!" Connie cried, brushing her off.

"Hm…" Peridot said. "We must meet this boy and find out if he's a monster in disguise… then… We shall set up a schedule according to both your needs and his, so any other time, you will spend together-"

"If you like him so much, talk to him. But don't get any ideas." Jasper muttered.

Connie frowned. "Fine, but you can't watch this time! You'll mess up my funky flow."

"Your funky flow?" Lapis and Peridot asked.

Connie ignored them and ran to the fridge. She grabbed something out of it.

"What's that?" Lapis asked.

"Nothing!"

* * *

Connie gulped as she practiced apologizing in her head.

She saw Steven and a small smile appeared on her lips. Suddenly, she heard a rumble of a monster. A boulder suddenly broke off the temple and was about to hit Steven!

"Hi, my name is Connie!" She yelled, leaping to him. Her gem glowed as she fell into the boy and a yellow bubble appeared around them, protecting them.

Connie watched the rock shatter, "How did I do that?!" She then turned back to Steven. "Hi, my name's Connie, Steven!"

The boy accepted her help in getting up and looked around in wonder. "We're in a bubble?! Cool!"

Connie was surprised, but explained, "I'm magic, well... half magic, on my mom's side."

"You did this?!"

"I-I guess so…" Connie laughed. "I'm a member of the Crystal Temps, we fight monsters and protect humanity and stuff."

"That's awesome! My dad does that too! He runs a car wash." They stared at each other. "So… can you do that again? After you make this one go away, of course." Steven laughed.

"Oh! Of course!" Connie blushed. She tried to make it vanish but couldn't.

"What's the prob, bob?"

"Er… it doesn't seem to want to go away…"

"Oh."

* * *

The two were trying to push the bubble.

"So, I've seen you in town quite a bit…" Connie panted.

"Yeah, my dad runs the car wash!" Steven cried.

"I go on adventures with the gems sometimes. They usually say it's too dangerous for me though." The girl fell over in effort. Steven helped her up.

"Do you go in a bubble all the time?" Steven asked with stars in his eyes.

"I'm afraid not, this is new. But the Crystal Temps will know what to do!"

They pushed it up the hill but it back lashed and sent them rolling back.

"Ugh! Hey guys! Help! Jasper, Lapis, Peri! Help!" Connie yelled.

"I don't think they can hear you…" Steven said.

"Oh! Right! I told them not to watch!"

"It's okay, we can wait! If there's others like you, I want to see them!" Steven cried.

"No!" Connie cried.

"Fine, I have friends that can help!" Stevensaid.

Connieglanced at him.

* * *

"Looks like Connie and Steven are in love!" Sadie laughed.

"Steven, I didn't know you knew Lars and Sadie too!" Connie gasped.

"Yeah! They run the Big Doughnut together." Steven shrugged. "We're all BFFs there."

"They also run the bookstore together!" Connie said.

Lars turned to Sadie who was making kiss faces until Lars pulled her away.

"Ugh! Sadie, help!"

"I'm helping them on their date!" Sadie replied.

"You're embarrassing them!"

"They're crazy about each other…" Connie and Steven said together.

"I go to their bookstore to get books and stuff all the time!" Connie cried.

"I don't really read that often, I like to watching Crying Breakfast Friends though!" Steven exclaimed.

"WHAT?!" Connie cried. Then Sadiestarting making kiss faces again. "Well, it's still a fun place to hang out.."

Lars suddenly started running at the bubble with a stool. It shattered on impact.

"I have a idea!" Steven said nervously.

* * *

Connie and Steven were looking at the boats as they passed. "Oh, there's a big boat and a little boat!" Steven cried with stars in his eyes.

"Wow, Steven, you sure know a lot about boats!" Connie laughed jokingly.

"That's what happens when you'refriends with everyone and need a break and your dad is working all the time to keep you living… and your mom is gone…. You look at boats…" They were quiet.

"Steven… Are you-"

Steven interrupted her after seeing a young boy on the docks. "ONION!"

Connie frowned as the boy walked up. "Um… We need a harpoon gun…."

"Yeah! To pop this bubble!" Steven exclaimed.

Connie breathed air on the bubble and spelled out harpoon gun. The boy stared obviously.

"Let me try…" Steven said. He made pictures to explain. Onion gave a thumbs up. Connie looked Steven, impressed.

Onion ran up and fired the harpoon gun. It deflected off the bubble and hit a boat.

"Whelp, there goes the big boat…"

* * *

"Connie, why are we at Funland?" Steven asked.

"Tons of horrible accidents happen here every day!" Connie explained. "One will break the bubble!"

"But which…" Steven muttered. They heard the screams of the kiddie coaster behind them. "Yeah, the kiddie coaster! Alright, we just roll down this ramp as the carts are coming at us, and the crash will break us free!"

They were waiting for the coaster. "Er, Steven what happens after the bubble pops?!"

"We'll be free!" Steven cried.

"Steven, I don't want you to get hu-"

A sudden roar filled their ears and the kiddie coaster hit them. They flung off and right into the ocean.

"Where are we?" Steven asked.

"Um… at the bottom of the ocean…"

Steven gasped.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Connie cried.

Steven gave a small smile. "Let's… get rolling…"

Suddenly, a worm monster went over them. They gasped. "Look, it's eating that bright stuff!" Connie explained. "T-that's better than us, right?"

The monster suddenly burrowed under ground, making a crevasse that made them fall farther down.

* * *

When Connie awoke, she saw her foot was in Steven's face.

"Yikes! Sorry, Steven!" Connie gasped, removing her foot.

He stood up wordlessly.

"This is horrible!" Connie whispered. "I'm afraid, Steven, and this is my fault! We're not okay…"

"YES, WE ARE!"

Connie flinched and looked up at Steven. His tone calmed down. "Connie…. We're going to die down here… but in a messed up way, I'm happy you're here with me… I've never had a best friend before."

"M-Me neither, do you want to be friends?" Connie whispered through tears. She broke down in tears again. All the scary things she had faced, she had to keep a positive attitude about it. "Steven, do you know how many times

I've nearly died this week?"

"Once?"

"Six times. I don't have my mom to talk to it about though…" Connie then saw something unexpected happen. Steven started to cry too.

"T-that's funny, my mom's gone too… She died… when I was born." He whispered through tears. "I miss her… everyday."

A sudden light filled the darkness and Steven looked up. Connie offered him a glow bracelet. "I saw you at the Boardwalk Parade last year. You were the boy on the car wash float, you had soap bubbles in your hair and you dropped yourbracelet. I  
picked it up, but then I couldn't find you. I saved it in the freezer so it would last longer, in case I saw you again… and now look…"

Steven gave a hiccup and smiled. "Thanks Connie…."

"I'm so, so sorry, Steven." Connie whispered again.

"It's okay. I'm having fun."

The bubble suddenly burst and Connie's lungs stung, but she lead Steven to the surface.

They smiled at each other when the worm monster suddenly attacked them! They flung to shore and it chased them.

"Come on!" Steven yelled. He ran to hide in the rocks but Connie tripped while running and fell in the sand.

The monster was getting closer and headed for Steven. "Why is that thing chasing us?! We didn't do anything!... unless talking about feelings shakes it up!" Steven creid.

Connie suddenly saw Steven's bracelet and gasped. "The bracelet! Steven!"

Steven ran from the monster and to her. "Connie!"

The children ran together from the chasing monster. Connie grabbed Steven's bracelet.

"Go! Go this way!" Connie cried, pushing Steven the other way.

"Connie!" Steven yelled. "Are you crazy?!"

"I'm sorry!" Connie cried. The girl evaded and dodged the monster, wrapping in around the poles of the dock. She gave a cry as she leapt right into Steven. Connie held up the bracelet though and the monster pulled. The dock shook

and then collapsed on the monster, destroying it.

"S-sorry for running into you." Connie laughed nervously.

"CONNIE!"

The two turned to see the Crystal Temps running to them.

"Connie, there is 99% chance you did something to make this!" Peridot growled.

"She was AWESOME!" Steven yelled, punching his hand in the air. Connie blushed. "Really? You mean it?!" He nodded.

"Here's your bracelet." Connie laughed.

"Thanks! So, you need to introduce me to everyone! Please?!" Steven cried.

"Yes, introduce us!" Lapis squealed. "Or does that mess with your funky flow?"

"No way! I use that all the time!" Steven creid.

Connie laughed. "This is Jasper,"

"I'll let you come near her, kid, but if you hurt a hair on Connie Universe's head-" Jasper started.

"Moving on!" Connie yelled loudly. "This is Lapis,"

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Lapis said, making her wings and flying to him to shake his hand. "But seriously, don't you ever hurt our Connie."

"No prob, bob." Steven said.

The gem frowned. "Connie just introduced me, my name is Lapis."

"And last of all, Peridot."

"Greetings-"

"Ah ha ha!" Steven suddenly cried with stars in his eyes. "You're so _cute_! Like a little slice of pie!"

Peridot gave a groan.


	8. Coordinated Connie

Connie awoke in a daze. She heard screaming and saw giant tea cups all around her. Pepole looked beaten as well as the Crystal Temps.

 **2 WEEKS LATER**

 ****

The gems were warping and Connie had her violin with her. "Pay attention Connie, this is going to be your first serious mission. You need to be ready." Jasper said.

"I promise I am! I'm always serious!" Connie creid. She suddenly went upside down without meaning to.

"Connie, you must realize that you can't fool around out here. You're going to puke on us and it will not be pleasant." Peridot said. She turned Connie upright and Connie's violin hit her in the face. "Ugh, why did you bring  
your clunky instrument with you?!"

"I don't know!" Connie creid. "I forgot to practice this morning and it's mine and-" The violin suddenly started floating upwards. Connie gasped and swam after it. "Connie! You will get a serious head injury if you  
keep-"

They reached the place and Connie fell in a strawberry patch nearby.

"Connie?! ARE YOU OKAY?!" Peridot yelled much louder than necessary.

"We're safe!" Connie cried, hugging her violin. They were covered in strawberry juice. Suddenly, white butterflies attacked her. "Ghaa! They're in my eyes!" Connie squealed. She ran around until Jasper grabbed her by the  
hair.

"OW!" Connie yelped.

Jasper shooed the butterflies away, then winched and released Connie. "S-sorry… Connie."

"It's okay, now they aren't in my eyeballs." The girl blushed.

"You're a goofball." Lapis snorted.

Peridot turned to Jasper. "I'm having second thoughts suddenly about Connie…"

"Just look at her." Jasper chuckled.

Peridot turned and saw Connie give a cute smile.

"Now, let's get that gemstone." Jasper said. The gems walked forward.

"Ah…" Peridot sighed. "Isn't this incredible? The Earth has continued to grow over the past… Very satisfying."

Connie glanced at her. "What do you mean?"

Peridot turned to her. "Well… This used to be a gem battlefield… during The Great Gem War..."

"D-did you guys… fight here? Did you guys fight in the war?" Connie whispered.

Lapis bit her lip, "I-I wasn't emerged yet… But they did."

The gems were silent the rest of the way.

* * *

The gems went inside a daunting pyramid temple together and Connie looked around.

She ran up to a floating triangle relic. "What's this thing?"

Peridot wasn't paying much attention to her, rather looking at the murals on the wall but muttered, "Whatever it is, Connie, I would suggest you do not touch it under any-"

The ground started to shake and they ran to Connie in shock. "I didn't touch it! My violin hit it on accident, I swear!"

"Ugh! I knew you shouldn't have brought that!"

"I'm sorry!"

The platform they were on raised then dropped abruptly. Jasper and Peridot landed gently in a cool crouch while Connie was hovered to the ground by Lapis. They looked around and saw torches light up. "Guess we gotta split up."  
Lapis said, looking at the multiple doors around them.

"Right. I will stay here and protect Connie from herself while you two find the mystery of this place." Peri said, grabbing Connie's wrist.

"Wait! Can I come too?! I want to help find the mystery!" Connie creid.

Lapis grabbed Connie's hand. "Yeah, she can come! Let's go!" Peridot grabbed Lapis's foot before they could take off. "Negative, Lazeli! You two working in a pair shall only lead to this places destruction." Peri said,  
pulling Connie away.

"Connie can come with me." Jasper said.

"Really?!" Connie squealed.

"Yes, but this is serious." Jasper said.

"Jasper, I'm not silly, I'm serious most of the time! You all know that." The gems slowly nodded in agreement. "I'm just clumsy, that's all."

"Peridot, could you let go of my arm?" Connie asked.

"No."

"Peridot! This doesn't work if I don't have my arms free!" Connie groaned.

Peridot gave a grumble and released her.

"Coordinated Connie… ACTIVATED!" Connie cried, punching her arm in the air.

Jasper beckoned the girl to follow.

"But what if this is that thing at Funland all over again?" Peridot creid.

"It's not! I've put that behind me!" Connie yelled, entering the door.

* * *

Jasper found Connie quiet for a while then remembered this what Connie always did when she was writing music. "Are you making a song?"

Connie glanced up then blushed. "You know me too well! Yes… but I thought it would be too silly…"

"I don't mind, squirt."

Connie smiled brightly. She started to play her violin and sang, "Oooh, we're on a magic treasure hunt, for some magic treasure junk! Magic, treasure, magic hunt!"

Jasper chuckled while Connie blushed again. "It's not exactly finished…"

* * *

They then came upon a room and tiles on the floor lit up. Connie glanced at Jasper for help. "We have to step on the glowing tiles." Jasper replied.

"Right! Coordinated Connie is ready!" Connie leapt gracefully on the tiles, spinning and turning correctly and gently, for watching Lapis paid off. Connie put her hands up as if to say "ta-da!" She suddenly tripped onto  
a tile.

"Connie!" Jasper cried.

The tiles started falling into a fiery pit below and the one beneath Connie fell away. Connie gripped a tile as she nearly fell. Her fingers were slipping!

Jasper suddenly slammed next to her and scooped Connie up, leaping to the doorway. Connie had her arms wrapped around Jasper's neck and the girl hugged Jasper hard. "I'm sorry… I wasn't coordinated at all.." Jasper hugged her back  
and showed the most affection towards anyone Connie had seen in awhile.

* * *

Connie felt her head go dizzy and felt nauseous for a moment. Jasper touched her shoulder. "Need a break, kid?"

"What? No." Connie grunted. They walked down a passageway together. "See? Look how strong I am!" She showed of her tiny muscle. Jasper chuckled, "You have a long way to go!" She showed her own muscles and Connie  
gasped in wonder.

The girl ran to a wall and slid her hand across the paintings. "Huh… There is a lot of triangles here…" The girl suddenly pushed one in on accident.

"Run!" Jasper yelled. Suddenly, spikes came down from the ceiling. Jasper made her helmet appear and looked up so the spikes would slam into that instead. Connie tripped while runing and her violin flung off. "No!" She  
creid, rushing to it.

"Connie, run!" Jasper yelled again after Connie had grabbed her violin. The girl ran to the door and Jasper was not far behind, sliding under just as the spikes slammed down.

"Whoa…" The two whispered together.

They were now in a room with swinging blades, falling lava, and spikes.

"Heh, this is my kind of room." Jasper smiled.

Connie was nauseated and scared. "Get ready Connie, this is gonna be intense."  
 **2 WEEKS EARLIER**

"Get ready Connie, this is gonna be intense."  
Jasper said. They were getting ready for the Teacup ride at Funland.

Soon, they were seated and going. Peridot put down her teapot in anger. "Those clods lied, these aren't teacups!" Lapis had fallen asleep.

Connie was a bit nauseous while Jasper said, "This is… fun."

Connie held back puke. "Jasper, I need to get off the ride!" Connie suddenly leapt from the ride with literally no warning.

She landed on Mr. Frowny. The man showed no shock but the lever broke and teacups went everywhere and into the ocean. Lapis awoke in time to fly up and save everyone from the water, but Connie was still in trouble. "Connie…" Mr.  
Frowny said dully, "leave forever, please."

* * *

Connie awoke in Jasper's arms and realized they had reached the end of the room. "W-we made it?"

"Yeah, no help from you." Jasper said, teasing her. "You collapsed." She put Connie down and Connie jogged after her. "Collapsed?!" They were then in the main room they had started in.

"Ghaa! We're back to the start!" Jasper cried.

"What?!" Connie cried.

Peridot came out of a room and groaned, "Jasper, there you are! The doors and rooms here make no sense, they all bring you here! It is very, very annoying!"

Lapis suddenly flew out of a door and cried out in agony. "GET ME OUTTA HERE!" She flew into another one.

"There are sixteen doors, and we entered from the northeast and went through three consecutive rooms in a straight line…" Peridot said. Behind her, Lapis ran out of another door with a bear trap on her head. Lapis tugged it off  
and threw it away, running to another door. "But arrived back here out the southern-most door, which could only mean…" Peridot whispered. "THIS IS TOO COMPLICATED!"

Lapis suddenly slid out as a ice block. "Our deaths are coming!" Peridot yelled, picking Lapis out of ice with her metal pole.

"W-what do we do?!" Connie cried.

"We go back in. Again, and again, and again, and again." Jasper said, going Connie more and more anxious.

"I CAN'T!" Connie cried.

"Connie?" Peridot asked.

"It's okay, you know…" Jasper whispered.

"No, no it's not, you were all right about me. I wanted to do this so bad, but now I feel like I'm gonna throw up. This is just like the teacups!" Connie sobbed.

"Oh, I didn't mean that, well at the time I did, but-" Peridot stopped with a glare from Jasper.

"Wait you guys, what if this is just like the teacups? That's why we're getting so lost. That's why I'm feeling so sick. All the rooms are spinning us around so we end up here!" Connie cried.

Jasper made her helmet and slammed her head down on the floor. Tiles fell away and the gems tumbled down. They were on a circling mechanism, on different parts.

"Heh, heh! I knew it! It's manipulating the rooms above. Every room we entered spun us until we came back to the central chamber! It's just like the teacups ride at Funland!" Peridot exclaimed.

"Peri, Connie already got that!" Lapis smirked.

Peridot made a face while Connie saw a diamond out of place. She turned to Jasper. "Jasper, I need to get off the ride!"

Jasper smiled and took Connie up. "Coordinated Connie… go!" She threw the girl, who landed on the platform. She placed the diamond in the right place. The temple suddenly exploded. Connie and the gems were in the bushes.

"CONNIE?!" Peridot screeched.

"Hush! She's over here." Lapis laughed.

Connie was covered in strawberry juice again and held the gem.

Peridot bubbled it. "Not too bad, Connie."

"Nice work, Coordinated Connie!" Lapis said, ruffling her hair.

Jasper smiled. "I like regular Connie much more." She gave Connie her violin.

Connie gasped. "My violin!" She started to sing, "Oh... that's the end of another day. It was mighty serious, I'd have to say. The Crystal Temps looked really cool when they made the temple exploo —" Butterflies suddenly  
attacked her again. "Not again!" 


	9. Enchantress Millionaire

The Crystal Temps warped into the Crystal Temple. "Lazuli, why would you think adding water to a blood polyp would make it weaker, clod?!" Peridot cried. "You've got it's guts all over Connie!"

The "guts" Peridot was speaking of were juices from the monster. Connie looks disgusted for a moment. "I do need a shower…" She tried to walk to her room but the gunk suddenly hardened and kept her in place. The Crystal

Temps didn't notice though, too busy fighting.

"How would I know it would get bigger?!" Lapis cried.

"You always are to extreme with your powers, clod!" Peridot snarled. "You got us in danger!"

Lapis used her powers to get water from her gem and hit Peridot with it. She stuck her tongue out. Despite her always seeming motherly to Connie, she was rather childish to the others. "LAPIS! You're such a-"

"Let me guess, clod." Lapis growled.

"Jasper, help me out here!" Peridot cried. Jasper shrugged, "I think she's fine."

"JASPER!" Peridot yelled.

"Ugh, Lapis, you can be a little over the top sometimes…" Jasper bit her lip.

Lapis looked hurt. "Fine." She left through the temple door.

"Hopefully she'll take that to heart now!" Peridot sighed. Jasper groaned. Connie watched them leave, still stuck in place. "Guys?"

At night, Connie had fallen asleep in the goop but a sudden light awoke her. She was hidden in the shadows but a hooded figure ran lightly out the door. Connie caught a glimpse of bare blue feet and realized it was Lapis. Connie fell overand the  
shell broke, freeing the girl. She raced after Lapis.

Connie crawled to the window of the place Lapis had run to and saw the woman take off her cloak on a stage. Lapis hadn't changed her appearance by much, she was taller, and not as thin, her hair was put up and wore a even more flowing dressthen  
her usual, and it was completely black.

Mr. Frowny held a microphone and didn't seem excited at all. "For those who didn't get it already, you are about to see the Water Witch, the most hated dancer in the Beach City Underground's… history." He sighed. The crowd booedand Connie was amazed.  
Lapis egged on the crowd with a small smirk. "Rember, whoever is cheered for the most and is the best at dancing by my judge as well… wins. The Water Witch is undefeated."

"... Let's introduce her opponent, The Loch Ness Bloggster."

Lapis's smirk turned upon Ronaldo, who was in a costume.

"I'm, uh, going to end your reign of terror!" He cried. He started doing a strange shimmie and The Water Witch laughed. She leapt high in the air, so high, most couldn't believe it, and twirled in the air. She landed quietly andgave a curtsy to  
her shocked audience.

"Well, now, now that was quick." Mr. Frowney said. The crowd booed.

The Water Witch stepped over a sweating Ronaldo feeling powerful.

* * *

The Water Witch chuckled in victory and turned back into Lapis.

"Lapis!" Connie cried, landing on top off her.

The woman gasped and her wing flung Connie off. She turned and saw her. "Connie? Oh, I'm sorry-"

"Lapis, are you a secret dancer?"

"Oh… Well… You see…" Lapis sighed in defeat. "Yes."

Connie gasped and leapt up. "But how?! When?! Why?!"

"Come here. Let me explain something to you." Lapis whispered. Connie trotted up and Lapis put her arm around her. "On the stage, nobody can tell me what to do! And if they try, I GRACEFULLY DESTROY THEM!" Lapis cried.

"And… people like that?"

""Like it"? They LOVE it!" Lapis laughed. "Well, they hate it, but it's all part of the fun, you know?" The gem gave a sigh. "E-everyone here, gets that."

Connie grabbed her hand. Lapis looked at it. "You don't know what it's like having Peridot on your back all the time!"

"Are you kidding me?!" Connie laughed. She started to impersonate Peridot, "Connie, you cannot touch my stuff without my permission!"

Lapis laughed. "And Jasper doesn't even care about what I do! Isn't that great?"

"Yeah…. Can I be a dancer with you?" Connie asked sweetly.

Lapis thought about it. "Well, I haven't won the tag team belt yet…. But you can't tell Peri or Jasper!"

"Deal!"

Connie happily put on her leggings and and sparkly tank top. She tied her hair up into a bun and put on a wizard hat. "Introducing Enchantress Millionaire! Rich witch from the wizard world, once the single child of the wealthy Millionaire

Family, she cast out her own destiny making money in the Magic business."

"You just came up with that?" Lapis gasped.

"Yeah! What's your backstory?"

"Witches are awesome."

* * *

"Two local heroes in the ring tonight, they build hospitals for the sick, and they build muscles that look it up for... Concrete Heat and Chunk Truck…"

The two builders were ready two dance.

"Facing off against the Water Witch and our new competitor…. Enchantress Millionaire." The crowd booed.

"This little girl's gonna get creamed!" Sadie said in the crowd.

"From here," Lars replied, "she kinda looks like Connie."

"Yeah, right." Sadie chuckled.

Connie was about to walk on stage when Lapis blocked her. "Connie, wait! I'll do all the actual dancing, I don't want you to get hurt."

"Do I still get to wear the costume?"

"Sure." Lapis shrugged.

Lapis and Connie walked on stage and faced their opponents. Lapis took a giant leap and landed in front of Chunk Trunk. She started to twirl, faster than the man could when Connie spotted Concrete Heat sneaking up on Lapis.

"Water Witch! Water Witch, look out!" Connie cried.

Concrete Heat threw safety tape at Lapis and it caught her foot. She fell over and grunted in pain.

"That's not fair!" Connie cried.

"Everything's fair here." Mr. Frowney sighed.

"It is?"

"Yes…"

"Fine." Connie whispered. "Hey Chunk Truck!" The girl yelled, getting the man's attention. "I'll give you a million wizard bucks to throw the match!"

"Enchantress Millionaire is offering a bribe." Mr. Frowney sighed.

The man walked up and Connie pulled out her brief case. Connie leapt onto the stage and twirled with her briefcase into a spin attack, hitting the man repeatedly.

"Oh snap! Did you see that?" Sadie cried, swiping away Lars popcorn.

"Way to go, Enchantress!" Lapis laughed. Connie blushed.

As the two won more and more matches, Peridot and Jasper started to notice Connie's props. Sadie even caught Connie's tie that she threw out to the fans.

"It's very hot tonight. Enchantress Millionaire has bought out our soda stand. Maybe she'll share with her thirsty fans…" Connie dropped all the sodas on the floor. "Now there's no sodas for anybody…" Connie started jumpingin the puddle. "This is…  
sad."

"Classic Enchantress!" Sadie laughed. She got up and ran to Connie. "Enchantress! Can you sign this for me?!" Connie looked at her soda cup. The girl smirked. "You couldn't AFFORD it!" She slapped the drink to

the ground.

Connie saw Sadie's hurt face and her smile faded.

"I thought we were just having fun!" Connie cried.

"Enchantress Millionaire, you are the cruelest creature on the planet!" Mr. Frowney sobbed, showing some emotion.

Connie heard the booing and felt awful…

The girl held her hat in her hands and sighed.

Lapis flew up to Connie's room. "Connie! You ready for our final dance off?"

"Lapis… Am I the cruelest creature on the planet?"

"Connie, those are just words that show how people feel about you."

Connie grew sadder.

"Listen, Connie you can't let anyone make you feel like garbage." Lapis growled.

"Is that… Is that how you feel?"

Lapis's face grew dark like the stormy ocean. "I only feel what I want to feel.."

"Fans of dancing, welcome to the tag team championship." Mr. Frowny said. "On the stage tonight... They stomped their way through the tournament and into our hearts… Dashing Danny Doober and Handsome Hank Hackleschmidt."

The crowd cheered. "Only one thing would make these men look better, it's the tag team belts." He said, gesturing to the belts hanging from a rope. "Standing in their way are the ruthless Queens of the wizard world, they'll eat your

kids and fire your parents. It can only be the Water Witchand Enchantress Millionaire." There was extreme booing from the crowd.

"Don't you dare out dance those beautiful men, you monsters!" A random person yelled.

"People really don't like Enchantress M." Lars whispered.

"She's awful because she hurt me specifically!" Sadie growled, holding up a sign that said, "ENCHANTRESS IS A JERK!"

Just as the dance was about to start, the lights came on. Lapis shielded her eyes. Peridot and Jasper leaped from the ceiling.

"W-what are you doing here?!" Lapis growled.

"What are we doing here?! What is this?!" Peridot yelled, showing a poster. Lapis glared at Connie but she shrugged. "I didn't make that! Someone else did!"

"We have new opponents I see…" Mr. Frowny said.

"No, wrong, clod! This competition is over!"

"What?! Why?" Connie cried.

"WHY?! I can't believe you've been sneaking off to this... this circus of violence!" Peridot growled.

"But dancing isn't violent-"

"I DON'T CARE! And you!" Peridot cried, pointing to Lapis. She whispered, "using your powers to show yourself off!"

"It's not enough that you're on my case all the time, you have to ruin this for me too?!" Lapis yelled.

"We aren't here to fight, or dance, or whatever you do for amusement!" Peridot snarled.

"Dance off! Dance off!" The crowd cheered.

"We don't know how to dance, clods!" Peridot yelled.

"Connie, Lapis," Jasper said.

"What?!" Lapis growled, her eyes burning with hatred.

"Go back to the temple, now." Jasper growled.

"NO! I'M NOT A CHILD!" Lapis yelled. She leapt to Jasper and kicked her leg up, kicking Jasper. Everyone gasped.

"Don't do this…." Jasper hissed.

Lapis didn't dance this time. The girl ran forward and slammed into Jasper, punching her. Jasper grabbed the girl by her wrist and threw her into a wall. Lapis ran back and didn't care if the humans saw her powers anymore. She flew up and

used her water to grab Jasper into a chokehold.

"Wait!" Connie sobbed.

Lapis smirked at the girl. Jasper growled to Lapis. "You've always been a little… BRAT!" Jasper grabbed the water and slammed Lapis hard into the wall. Lapis looked up at Jasper and her helmet appeared. Connie grabbed the microphone.

"WAIT! I want to tell you Water Witch's backstory." She turned to Peridot. "She was the wildest and craziest witch in the wizard world, so wild, the other witches couldn't take it. So she went to look for somewhere she fit in, somewhere

with other people who felt misunderstood…."

"That really sounds like Connie." Lars said. Sadie shushed him.

"That's why we're all here. To be wild and free, and gracefully shattering each other's dreams, and wear cool costumes, and make up nicknames and... so can't we just have this? Can't we just dance?" Connie cried.

Jasper walked up to Connie, her helmet disapparated, and she took the microphone. "No."

The people gasped again.

"Because we are the…" Jasper glanced at Peridot. "Notorious O-order of... Dancing... Haters?" Peridot gasped then smirked. She grabbed the microphone away.

"Heh, heh, heh, yes!" The gem laughed, truly sounding wicked. "We wanna stop all dancing everywhere! EVERYWHERE I TELL YOU!" She cried. She turned to Lapis. "Are you going to let us destroy all dancing, you

little clod?" Lapis stood up slowly.

"Don't let them destroy dancing!" Sadie yelled. "Enchantress! Water Witch! Enchantress! Water Witch!" She held up a revised sign that said "ENCHANTRESS IS not A JERK!" Soon the whole crowd had joined in.

"We'll stop you!" Connie cried.

"... The magic duo is fighting back, folks… Are they gonna win... The suspense is destroying me…" Mr. Frowney said.

Connie danced remarkably better than Peridot and she pretended to faint.

Suddenly, the two opponents they were supposed to be fighting brought on a ladder. Connie realized she could now get the belts!

Lapis twirled in front of Jasper and they weaved around each other in circles. Jasper suddenly touched Lapis's arm on accident. Their gems started to glow and cold panic hit Lapis. Her eyes widened in fear and she yanked away, gasping for air. Jasper  
/realized what she did and walked up to Lapis. The woman didn't look up. "I'm sorry about putting you in a choke hold…" Lapis whispered, not wanting to speak of what had just happened. "I'm sorry too…"

A loud cheer erupted from the crowd as Connie waved the belts over her head.

"They've won…" Mr. Frowney said. "And they have saved dancing…."

"Sadie, I'm really confused…." Lars whispered.

"I love you, Enchantress Millionaire…" Sadie said, shedding a tear.

* * *

 **Hey guys! So I know I haven't written any author's notes in this story so far but I wanted to exsplain somethings. 1. Sadie and Lars are switched because... Guys, Connieis fourteen in this! When we get to that episode where they switch bodies... I didn't want to write that, older pepole know what I mean! 2. Mr. Frowney and Mr. Smiley switched because a fan suggested it, and I personally liked that. 3. For this episode, dancing instead of wrestling, I was originally thinking Jasper for this but she already had a episode with Connie and this was Amethyst's episode and Lapis is Amethyst. The reason I picked dancing was I can't see Lapis wrestling anyone, when she wants someone to get hurt, she gracefully does so, not getting her hands dirty:Gracefully staying away from the fight of the Crystal Gems and doubles, gracefully almostdrowningConnie and Steven, gracefully slamming the Rubies ship to Earth,and how could we forget, gracefully trapping Jasper at the bottom of the ocean with chains while she's yelling... I love Lapis, guys.**


	10. Connie and her Lion

"Water… I need water." Connie said, crawling on the ground.

"Connie, it'd be safer if you stood." Peridot groaned.

"But I'm one with nature!" Connie huffed.

They were in a hot desert cover with dunes, but structures were being made from the sand, and that couldn't happen.

"Is this the place?" Connie asked as they saw a castle made of sand.

"Yes." Jasper said. "The power in the structures have grow out of control."

"It's building columns with no roofs, stairs that go nowhere, it must be stopped." Peridot said.

"Let's go! This lack of water is spiking up my nerves." Lapis said.

There was a sudden roar and Connie jumped. "Did… did you guys here that?!"

"I did, but it would still be safer if you stay out here." Jasper said.

"But-"

"We'll go as fast as we can." Peridot said.

"There's nothing here that can hurt you, Connie!See you soon." Lapis said, ruffling the girl's hair. They then left.

Connie sighed and sat down next to a pillar. "It's. So. Desert." She said, putting her head in her arms. There was a sudden roar. "What was that?" She looked around. "Nothing can harm me… Nothing can harm me…" She whispered again and again.  
She suddenly spotted a figure with glowing eyes and squealed. She hid behind a column.

"Good thing this was here…" The column disintegrated. She saw the shadow once more and heard growling. A bright, very bright yellow lion approached her. "No… no! No! No!" Connie cried. She backed into a solid sand wall. Connie prepared to  
be attacked but the lion simply yawned and laid down. Connie slowly walked to it. "D-don't bite me…" She whispered. Her trembling hand grazed the lion's nose and she realized it was harmless, or it didn't want to harm her at least.

"Aw, you just wanted attention. Didn't you, didn't you?" The girl laughed, petting him. "Your mane, it's so soft." She buried her face in his mane. "So, you from around here, I guess. I'm just here on business." She climbed on Lion. "I really like  
your yellow fur. It so bright, you're like the sun!" Lion shifted, knocking Connie off. She climbed on again. "I always wanted an animal friend. But I thought it would be like a goldfish. Or a dog… But I guess fate had other plans for Connie Universe."  
Lion put his paw over her. "... and her best friend Lion." Connie whispered.

There was a sudden blast of sand covered them. They heard voices.

"Lapis! Bubble it, now!" Peridot cried.

"It's mine now! I destroyed the monster guarding it." Lapis said, holding the Desert Glass.

"If you drop it, it will rebuild everything!" Peridot growled.

"Jasper, Peri, and Lapis are back! Look professional!" Connie whispered.

"CONNIE! THERE'S A LION BEHIND YOU!" Peridot screeched. The gems summoned their weapons.

"Stop! He's tame! I promise." Connie cried.

"Huh, impossible!" Peridot huffed.

"Are you okay, kid?" Jasper asked. "Cool lion, by the way."

"Thanks! Look, I taught him to say "I love you!" Connie moved Lion's mouth with her hands. "I love you!" She said, pretending it came from Lion.

"That is adorable!" Lapis squealed. "I-I love you too, Lion!"

"Gross. Get your hands out of that thing's mouth. We have to get the Desert Glass out of the desert." Peridot glared at Lapis. "I got it." The woman sighed.

"Come on, Connie." Jasper said, motioning for her to come. "Okay, give me a sec." Connie whispered. The gems walked away.

"Hey Lion, I gotta go. I had a lot of fun, I feel like you really get me." The lion stared at her blankly. "Shh, this is already too hard for the both of us!" Connie said with tears in her eyes.

Connie was back at home, Lapis was asleep. They were in a pillow fort with the Desert Glass at the top. There was a sudden noise and Connie sprung up. "What was that?" Lapis shoved Connie over. "Hush, Connie, all I can hear… is your mouth…"

"I thought gems didn't need sleep." Connie whispered, going closer to Lapis.

"We don't… but I like it." Lapis yawned.

Connie heard the scratching again and got up. She went to the door and opened it. Lion was there!

"Lion?! How… This is such a surprise! You came all this way to see me?" Connie gasped. Lion tried to go in but Connie blocked his path.

"Whoa! You can't go in there! Lapis is pretend sleeping." Connie explained. "But that's okay, we're together again. Now we can do everything best friends do."

Connie stood at the cliff while Lion was below her. "Ready, Lion? I'm gonna jump! Get in position!" She was about to jump but hesitated. Lion made no move to catch her. "Catch me!" She yelled. "I'm falling!"

The lion didn't move. "Lion, I'm gonna die if I keep falling and you don't catch me!" Connie cried. "Ugh. This isn't gonna work."

Connie had a ball in her hand and threw it. Lion didn't move. "That throw was so good! Lion, all you gotta do is catch it in your mouth!" Connie cried. "Aw, you don't like that one either?" Lion began to walk away but Connie blocked him. "Okay,  
wait, I've got something you've gotta like!"

They were at Fish Stew Pizza.

"Fish Stew Pizza. Cats love fish, everybody loves pizza, so you're gonna love this!" Connie cried. "Wait here, we're gonna blow some minds."

She went in and saw only Onion and Ronoldo. She walked to the counter. "Hi Kiki! I'm just getting some pizza! Large, extra fishy pizza, please!"

"Wow, you're hungry, aren't you?" Kikilaughed.

"I'm ordering for two." Connie blushed.

Ronaldo did a spit take. "Connie's pregnant?! You're too young!"

Connie frowned. "Um… no. I have a pet Lion outside though!"

"You're not "lion" are you?" Kiki asked with a grin.

Connie giggled then shook her head. "Nope!"

"I believe it! Lots of weird stuff happens in Beach City. You'd know if you read my blog Keep Beach City Weird! I also have buttons!" Ronaldo showed off his buttons.

"Just go outside and see for yourselves." Connie shrugged. Everyone ran out and Connie nodded in approval. "Amazing! It's invisible!"

She then ran out and saw Lion was gone. "What?! He's not invisible! He's bright yellow!"

"How can he be really bright yellow if he's invisible?!" Ronaldo growled.

There's nothing out here Ronaldo, Connie was "lion"." Kiki sighed. "Sorry for using the same pun twice." Connie watched her go inside. "I bet you're not even pregnant…" Ronaldo stomped inside. "No, I'm telling the truth, he's real!" Connie  
cried. She turned to the little boy Steven had introduced her to. "Onion, you believe me right?" The glare the child gave made shivers go down her spine.

Connie ran back to the beach house and saw Lion scratching at the door. "Lion! You left me at the pizza place, I looked like a fool! I had to eat a whole pizza by myself!"

Lion suddenly broke open the door. "Lion! Stop!" Connie yelled. Lion saw the Desert Glass and a wave came from his mouth that slammed Lapis and the glass back. Lapis awoke and gasped. "Connie?! What is that lion doing here?!" She cried.

"Is this what you want, Lion?!" Connie yelled, grabbing the pillow. "I've been trying to play with you, and feed you, because I thought we were best friends. Did all of that mean nothing to you?!" Lion came closer but Connie ran out the  
door. Lapis stared for a moment in shock then got up. "Jasper! Peridot! We need help!"

Connie ran out and suddenly tossed the pillow onto the sand. "Connie, no!" Lapis screamed, but it was too late.

The sand on the beach started to shake and build the structures again, just as Peridot predicted. The other Crystal Temps ran out. "No, no, no! The Desert Glass is rebuilding its castle!" Peridot cried. "Lapis-"

"All I can say is I wasn't thinking clearly, I'm really tired…"

"WE'RE COMING, CONNIE!" Jasper yelled. The girl had ran to the beach immediately after she saw her mistake and was now caught in a sandstorm…

She pushed her way to the point and saw the Desert Glass. "I gotta get that glass!" Connie jumped from many pillars, each crumbling as she leapt away.

"We have to get to Connie, but this wall is indestructible!" Jasper cried in anger.

Lapis made her wings appear and glanced back at her friends. "I'll find her, and I'll bring her and the Desert Glass back!" She flew away.

Connie almost slipped on one hearing a familiar voice call out, "CONNIE!" She looked up to see Lapis flying over her. "Grab my hand!" Lapis cried, shoving her hand out. Connie jumped for it but she couldn't reach. Connie went tumbling to her doom  
but something caught her.

"L-lion?!" She cried. The lion nodded up to her after saving her. "You didn't come to steal the glass! You came to protect us from it!" Connie gasped in surprise. "The glass is over there! We have to get it, but I don't know how." Connie whispered.  
Suddenly, the lion roared his magic roar and some of the sand spikes disappeared. "That'll work!" Connie laughed. Lion created a path and sprinted up it. "Go! Go! Go!" His mistress cried. "We're almost there, boy!" They broke through the final wall  
and Connie snatched the glass away.

The sand structures disappeared almost immediately and Lion landed roughly. Connie flung off, right into Jasper's arms.

"Hi Connie, you have some explaining to do." Jasper said with a eyebrow raised.

Peridot took the Desert Glass and bubbled it.

Lapis blushed. "Sorry…"

"You are… pardoned." Peridot sighed.

"So I guess, this is goodbye... We had some good times, but I'm sure you have other magical stuff, to smash with other magical girls." Connie sighed to Lion. She then moved Lion's lips, "I love you Connie! I want to stay with you forever!"  
Connie gasped. "Oh, really?! Well, that's great! Guys, did you hear that?" The gems looked at each other.

"Are we really going to let her keep a lion?" Peridot sighed.

"We kept Lapis." Jasper teased.

Peridot took a second then realized the joke. "Ha, ha, ha! Kept Lapis!" Peridot laughed loudly while Lapis glared. "THAT WAS AMAZING!" Peridot cried, rolling on the ground with tears of laughter.

"Yay, Lion!" Connie squealed. She made the lion wink. "Wink!" 


	11. Arcade Mania

The Crystal Temps walked in a dark cave. All was quiet except for a squeaking noise. Jasper shushed them. "This way."

Peridot turned to Connie, who was responsible for the noise. Connie blushed in her yellow rain slicker. "Connie!" Peridot hissed in a whisper. "You're making too much noise! Take off that garment of clothing, now!"

"But Lapis told me to wear it! Honest!" Connie insisted.

Peridot glared at Lapis who shrugged. "I didn't want her to get cold, ok?"

Connie held her arms out to be quieter. "See? I'm being quiet!"

The gems trudged on when Connie suddenly stopped. "Guys…. this cliff I'm on is crumbling…"

"Then get off it!" Peridot squealed.

The cliff broke and Connie screamed in fear. She suddenly was scooped up by Lapis. Jasper and Peridot suddenly landed on the ground to face a giant gem monster.

It shot little spikes at them but Jasper dodged easily.

"Lapis! Get Connie out of here!" Peridot yelled.

"Hold on tight!" Lapis cried. Connie wrapped her arms around Lapis's neck. The woman zoomed away, to a nook in the side of a wall that they could safely watch from.

Jasper dodged the arms and made her helmet. She slammed into the monster's mouth and it poofed. Jasper bubbled the gem and sent it away.

"Jasper! That was amazing!" Connie cried. Lapis flew her down.

"Wait! Those little parasites are getting away!" Peri cried, pointing to the little drills left behind.

"And if they come back," Jasper smirked. "They'll have me to dealwith."

* * *

Connie skipped in front of the gems later on the beach. "We all worked so hard, we deserve a reward."

"You have something in mind?" Peridot assumed.

"Well," Connie said. "Steven's been telling me the arcade at Funland's pretty cool, can we try it?"

"Well…." Jasper muttered. "Do we have to?"

"Come on, guys!" Lapis said. "We deserve a break!"

* * *

They were at the Funland Arcade and Connie dragged Peridot to a game. "Try this! It looks like you'd like it." They looked up at a game called Road Killer.

"I get to… kill the road?"

"Yes. You like that, right?"

Peridot glanced at Connie. "... Sure?"

"Just try it!" Connie said, skipping away.

"Kill the road!" The game said.

"Huh…. Okay!" Peridot squealed.

* * *

"This game has water in it, you'll like it." Connie said, showing Lapis a game where she could shoot water out of a gun in clowns mouths. "You can get tickets and those will win you prizes!"

Lapis watched Connie bounce away. Lapis looked at the game then at her hands.

* * *

"Teens of Rage?" Connie whispered, pulling Jasper with her.

"Try this… I think you just punch." Connie said.

Jasper took it literally and punched the screen. It broke. "Yes! I won! Try to beat that, Teens of Rage!" Jasper cried. Connie stared.

She ran to another game called Punch Buddy. "Here! You can actually punch this!"

Jasper did so and the thing flew off. "Yes! I win again! These games are nothing!"

Connie took her to "Meat Beat Mania"

"Hey! This is a game that has no violence! You just… shake the meat to the beat?" Connie whispered in confusion.

"Whatever you say, kid." Jasper shrugged. Connie grabbed her before she punched the game and gave her a bag of coins. "Steven gave these to me, to try at the games. Just…use the meat!"

She walked over to Peridot to see the gem laughing in triumph. "DIE ROAD, DIE!"

"You're… doing fine." Connie whispered. She glanced over to see Lapis with a dark look in her eyes, her arms forward like she was a puppet. Connie saw Lapis was using her powers to drown the clowns and was winning many tickets.

"Lapis! W-what are you doing?!" Connie cried.

Lapis shook out of her trance. "I'm winning you a falcon plush, it looks like the one in your books…" Lapis said.

"You mean… from the Spirit Morth series?!" Connie cried.

"Yeah."

"Aweso-"

Suddenly, Mr. Frowny walked up. "Do you two know what happened to Teens of Rage?" He asked blandly.

"Oh, yes sir! Um… about that…" Connie stuttered.

Lapis realized what must've happened and covered Connie's mouth. Connie looked at her with confusion. "Actually, we don't!" Lapis laughed nervously. Lapis tugged Connie away.

"But I do! This is wrong!" Connie cried.

"I don't want us to get in trouble!" Lapis answered. "I think saving the world multiple times will be enough for him!"

She grabbed Peri's arm as they passed. "We're going home!" Lapis said. Peridot pulled away. "No! I'm winning!"

"P, come on!" Lapis yelled. Her water came out of her gem and pushed Peridot away from the game. "NOOO! LAPIS, YOU CLOD!"

* * *

It was the next day and Connie was absorbed in her book.

"What's the mission today?" She asked dully, almost completely trapped under the book's spell.

"Jasper will let us know." Peridot said, practicing her powers.

"I wonder what the mission is…" Connie mumbled, rolling over on her stomach on the bed.

"Jasper told me a secret mission for you, Connie!" Lapis exclaimed from down on the couch.

"Really?!" Connie squealed.

"Yeah! She said to put the book down and spend some time with Lapis, oh wait! That's me!" Lapis laughed. "Seriously, you're too obsessed with that silly book!"

"I am not!" Connie huffed. Her phone suddenly rang it's little catchy song and Connie answered it. "Hey, Steven! What's up?" The gems watched her listen and then nod. "Okay! Yeah! Yeah, I'll be there!"

* * *

Connie ran down to the beach. "Hey, Steven!"

Steven turned with his metal mutt and smiled. "Oh, hi Connie! Thanks for coming!"

Connie ran to him and took the metal detector he gave her.

They started hunting for quarters together with the two Metal Mutts.

"So… Other than helping you search for quarters, you said you had something to talk about with me?" Connie asked.

"Oh, yeah! It's your gem friend, Jasper, I saw her at the arcade a little bit ago. Is she okay? She seemed… angry, like she was going to punch something!" Steven said.

Connie looked up. "W-what?!"

Suddenly, Steven fell back in surprise. Connie turned to him. "What's the matter?" He pointed to the sand and Connie saw one of the parasites from the day before. It snapped onto Connie's hand and she cried out in fear. She threw it upward  
and Steven gasped. "What is that?!"

"A parasite!" Connie cried. She turned to Steven. "You need to hide!"

"No! I'm not leaving you alone! I can protect you!" Steven cried.

"No! Not now!" Connie cried. "Go!"

"Connie-!"

Connie shoved him away the other direction. "Please! I'm protecting you!"

Steven looked upset but then grabbed her hand and closed it around something hard. He ran away. "Maybe I can't protect her… but the gems will!"

* * *

A few minutes later, Connie screamed in pain as the tiny drills hit her. Suddenly, a metal pole block some of their strikes. Peri and Lapis landed beside her.

"Steven told us you were in danger! I like that kid, he keeps you safe!" Lapis cried.

Connie then remembered Steven's gifts and glanced down at her hands. Eight quarters? What was she to do with eight quarters?! Just add them to the bag with the many others he gave her that Jasper now had and was using to play… "Meat  
Beat Mania." Connie breathed.

"We need Jasper!" Peridot growled, the spikes overwhelming them.

"I'm on it!" Connie yelled.

* * *

The girl raced to the arcade and found Jasper still playing. She was incredible!

"Jasper! Jasper, we need help!" Connie cried. The gem didn't respond. "Jasper?!"

Jasper clenched her teeth when Connie grabbed her arm. "Get. Off. Me." She growled.

Connie let go. "Are you… okay?"

Jasper didn't look at her. "I must beat this game! It's taunting me!"

"Jasper, the little drills are back! Lapis and Peri are in trouble!" Connie cried.

"Just… 5 more hours…" Jasper growled.

"You're obsessed! I'll save you!" Connie said, running to the cord. She unplugged the game and it stopped. Jasper turned to Connie. "You think that will stop me from winning, kiddo?"

"Jasper, what has gotten into you?!" Connie cried.

Jasper shoved the girl to the ground then sighed. "Yellow gave this to me only for emergencies… I don't care." Jasper got a gem destabilizatior from her belt in the back and put it in the game. She resumed.

Connie realized what she must do and ran to the game. She inserted the quarters and started to play. She tried 3 more times, failing each! She had no quarters left

"No…" Connie whispered. "No, no, no! That was supposed to stop you! Why haven't you stopped?! What is wrong with you right now?!" Connie sobbed. She ran up to the screen and started to punch the game's screen, tears slipping  
down her face. "Your friends need you! Please! You've become a monster!" The game finally broke.

Connie sobbed over the game when she felt a hand on her. She turned to see Jasper had tears in her eyes too. "Connie… I'm sorry. My competitive spirit always takes control whenever I'm really upset about something…"

"Is this about Lapis? Is that what you're upset about? Don't think I didn't notice how scared she was at the dance competition last week. Will you tell me what's up?" Connie asked.

"Some other time…" Jasper whispered. She ruffled the girl's hair.

Connie watched Jasper run out to join thier team and they started fighting the drills.

"It was you." Mr. Frowney muttered at Connie from behind. "You broke my games, didn't you? Oh, of course you did."

Connie frowned as he handed her a broom. 


	12. Giant Woman

Peridot and Lapis sat at the beach playing checkers. Peridot got one of Lapis's pieces and smiled. "Ha, ha! Recover from that!"

Connie threw a water balloon at Lapis to signify her turn but in the gem's thinking, the balloon stopped midair and flung back at Connie.

Connie laughed and wrung out her hair. "You can't do that every time!"

"Try to stop her." Peridot grumbled. She looked up at Lapis to see the woman very concentrated. "Heh, trying to escape your defeat, I see!"

Lapis smirked. "Nope, because I just won!" She got all of Peri's checkers in a triple jump.

Peridot started. "You cheated!"

"Did not!"

"Ugh! Losing is the worst possible thing!" Peridot cried, falling on the sand and she was pelted with water balloons.

"Winning isn't everything, Peri." Lapis said.

"Oh, is that what you think in battles?" Peridot huffed.

"Why are you so difficult?" Lapis growled.

"We never form Turquoise because you're the difficult one!"

"I'm the difficult one?! You-"

"Wait, who is Turquoise?!" Connie yelled, pushing between them.

"It's the two of us, together as one." Lapis said, clasping her hands together.

"Yes, but Lapis never wants to fuse!" Peridot huffed.

"I have my reasons!" Lapis said. "We only fuse into Turquoise in the most dire of circumstances." Lapis grabbed some water from the ocean and molded it into small figures of herself and Peridot. Lapis's little figure danced  
elegantly, as if in a waltz… and Peridot's danced rather robotically.

"Hey! I don't dance like that!" Peridot gasped. She waved the water away.

"Um, have you seen yourself dance?" Lapis asked.

"Tell me more about Turquoise!" Connie creid.

"Well, she's a powerful, and really cool, that part's me." Lapis said. "And… hm… well, she's kinda short and kinda smart… that's Peridot."

"Lapis means Turquoise is a combination of my many strengths and good looks, and Lapis's powers and her physical attributes are in there too." Peridot exclaimed.

"Wow! Can you form her now?" Connie asked.

"No." Lapis said immediately.

"Lapis, you never fuse! Not like I want to… but-" Peridot started.

Lapis's tone turned sharp. "No! I… _We_ only fuse in emergencies, when there isn't any other way around it! _You_ know that."

A sudden light emitted from the beach house and Connie gasped. "Jasper's back!"

* * *

They ran to the house and Connie bounced up to Jasper. "D-did you bring me anything?!" She then blushed. "I mean… uh…" Jasper smiled and handed her a scroll. "I know you like to read, so I brought you it from a forgotten  
gem library."

Connie gasped in awe and opened it. She frowned. "This… isn't in English…"

"Oh." Jasper rubbed her neck. "You can still… put it on display in your room?"

"Okay!" Connie cried.

"Was your mission successfull?" Peridot asked.

"Yes. I found the Geode beetles of Heaven and Earth. We should split up to retrieve them." Jasper said.

"Well, I'm not going with Peridot, we need a break from each other." Lapis said with her arms crossed.

"What a coincidence! I don't want to work with a clod like you!" Peridot retorted.

"When will this end?!" Connie muttered under her breath.

"You three will go together, I go alone." Jasper said.

"Why?" All three of them asked.

"The Earth Beetle will be harder to get…. a humongous guardian is there, and only I have the gem destabilizatior."

The three gems without Jasper stepped on the warp pad.

"Connie," Jasper said. The girl turned. "keep the peace."

Connie nodded.

* * *

They were now outside the Sky Spire.

"Whoa… Is this where the Heaven Beetle is?" Connie whispered.

"Yes." Peridot said.

"It's at the top." Lapis said.

"Hm… so… Is Turquoise a short giant woman, or a tall giant woman, or is she a combination of your height?"

Lapis groaned.

"Does one of you control the right arm and the other the left?" Connie asked, running after them as they started to walk.

They climbed up stairs. "These are a lot of stairs… you should form Turquoise and fly me up there!"

"No." Lapis and Peri growled.

"Wait! What about reading? Who gains the knowledge? Or do you both? That would be so cool!"

There was a sudden rumbling in the bushes and the gems summoned their weapons. A little baby bunny leapt out.

"Ah! Look out! It's a magical bunny guardian! Quick, you have to form Turquoise! It's the only way to defeat it!" Connie cried. She glanced at them. "We're gonna… die because of it!"

"Lapis doesn't like to fuse." Peridot muttered.

"We only fuse in deadly situations!" Lapis growled.

Peridot walked up to the rabbit. "This meek creature appears to be harmless." The bunny suddenly bit her boot and Peridot squealed. "DON'T TOUCH ME, SMALL RABBIT!"

Connie gasped. "Don't hurt it!"

She ran up and took the baby bunny. "Shh, it's okay… I'm guessing you want to see Turquoise too. I never get to see her."

Connie then started to sing, cradling the bunny while looking up at Peridot and Lapis. _"All I wanna do is see you turn into a giant woman, A giant woman! All I wanna be is someone who gets to see a giant woman."_

 __

They were climbing up a mountain _. "All I wanna do is help you turn into a giant woman, A giant woman! All I wanna be is someone who gets to see a giant woman."_

 __

Lapis was dusted with rock remains and glared at Peridot. The gem seemed confused, and truly was, she hadn't meant to.  
 _  
_

 _"Oh I know it'll be great and I just can't wait to see the person you are together. If you give it a chance you can do a huge dance because you are a giant woman. You might even like being together and if you don't it won't be forever._ "  
Connie sang, hugging them both.

* * *

They were now near the top. Connie was running as she sang, trying to keep up with the bunny. " _But if it were me, I'd really wanna be a giant woman, a giant woman! All I wanna do is see you turn into a giant woman~._ "

"Wait up, Lisa!" Connie called after the bunny.

She was about to leap after the bunny but Peridot grabbed her. "Your human body could not recover from a fall like that!" She cried.

"Then she can go the safer route." Lapis said. She grabbed Connie and put her on her back. Lapis flew to one of the pillars.

"Lapis! That pillar is very unstable!" Peridot yelled.

Lapis smiled and shook her head. "No, it's not, we're completely-" She then saw Peridot's face turn mortified then Lapis heard the shrieking of Connie.

"She _had_ to save the rabbit!" Peridot yellef.

The gem jumped after the girl and Lapis screamed in horror.

Peridot grabbed Connie and Connie hugged her bunny, Lisa, close. A pair of strong arms grabbed Peridot around the waist and it was Lapis. She slowly flew them up but slipped while landing on the pillar. She cried out but Peridot's metal pole  
snatched her up by her waist. They landed safely.

"That was incredible!" Connie cried. "Why can't you work together like that all the time?"

* * *

"Ugh… I can't feel my legs." Connie sighed as they reached the top of the temple. Then, she saw a little temple on a pedestal. She ran up.

"This is so cute! The beetle has a little bed, little bongos, a little baby book too!" Connie giggled, looking in a window. Peridot looked in and frowned. "Where's the bug?"

"Oh no! Did it leave?!" Lapis gasped.

There was a sudden loud squawk and they looked up. A ginormous bird hovered over them. Connie realized she had left Lisa all alone in the open and the bird suddenly came in and swallowed the rabbit whole.

"My child…" Connie whispered.

Peri flung her pole at it, using her powers to swerve around the beast's attacks. Suddenly, it swallowed the pole too!

"Oh clod." Peridot whispered. Lapis grabbed her and Connie's hands and push them inside the temple.

"This is a perfect time for you to form Turquoise!" Connie creid.

Peridot looked at Lapis.

"I-" Lapis started.

"Please… I know you don't like it anymore, but we have to do this! For Connie." Peridot whispered.

"F-for Connie…" Lapis murmured.

They went on opposite sides of the room and Lapis started to twirl, moving her legs gracefully along the floor as her gown flowed around her.

Peridot walked up and did a spin. They joined hands in the center of the room and Peridot dipped Lapis. Lapis suddenly gasped in fear. "Let go of me!"

"W-what?"

"Let go of me, now!" Lapis creid. Peridot raised her up.

"Lapis, what's wrong?" Connie asked.

Lapis shook her head. "I'll never fuse again!" She yelled.

"You don't mean that!" Peridot creid.

"Yes, I do! I'm never hurting anyone ever again because of fusion!" Lapis sobbed.

"Guys! If you can't fuse, this temple could be destroyed! And also, I could be eaten by a giant bird!" And just like that, the bird smashed through the celling and swallowed Connie.

* * *

Connie was in the Giant Bird, surrounded by junk. She saw her bunny out of the corner of her eye and gasped. "Lisa! How can you eat at a time like this?" She creid, seeing the rabbit chew on something shiny. "Hey, is that the  
Heaven Beetle? Let me see it." She pulled the beetle out. Suddenly, a giant arm penetrated the bird. Connie screamed as more came, searching for something. It grabbed Lisa and Connie.

This destroyed the giant bird and Connie was taken to a safe place. She gazed at her savior. She was ginormous and had a braid of beautiful blue and blond hair. She had turquoise skin and shinning blue eyes. The woman had a green top that  
Connie recognized and Peridot's vest and she had a pair of flowing blue and black pants, but that was Lapis's dress material! "Turquoise?" Connie whispered.

They turned at the sound of the birds remains forming smaller versions of their past form. Turquoise gasped and picked up Connie.

"Hold on tight!" Turquoise yelled. Connie clung to the woman's braid. The fusion leapt off a cliff and Lapis's wings appeared on her back. She flew up and Connie squealed in delight.

They landed on a piece of land and saw the birds coming. "Back away, this is going to be big."

Connie did and Turquoise closed her eyes. Connie heard a rumbling and gasped. She saw little pieces of metal come of the ground and water come from the ocean nearby. Turquoise slammed her hands together and Connie watched the items glow  
and transform into a giant metal, water infused bomb…

Turquoise threw it at the hordes and it exploded with water, poofing them.

Connie stared then Turquoise offered her hand. Connie hesitantly took it. She looked into the woman's eyes. They looked like Lapis'... and the clothes and the metal felt like Peridot… "Um, d-do you know who I am?"

Turquoise giggled and started to sing softly. " _All you want to do, is see me turn into…_ "

"A giant woman…"

* * *

They returned home and Jasper looked up. She gasped in suprise. "Lapis! You fused?! Er, I mean… it's good to see you, Turquoise." She coughed.

"I'm glad to be of assistance." Turquoise whispered.

"So, where's the Heaven Beetle?"

Turquoise's calm expression melted into one of horror. "I-I don't have it!"

She unfused in the panic. The two gems merely stared at each other in shock.

"Hey! I have the Beetle!" Connie cried, remembering and pulling it out of her pocket.

"Thank you, kiddo."

"All I had to do was get swallowed alive." Connie said proudly.

"Ha, you'll be great at fusing one day." Jasper laughed.

"Yeah…" Connie breathed. "WAIT, I CAN DO THAT TOO?!" She squealed. 


	13. Too Many Birthdays

"Why is there so much junk in the fridge?" Peridot groaned.

"You were the one who put a giant egg in there." Lapis shrugged.

They searched harder until Connie gasped, "I found it!" She lifted out something wrapped in tin foil. They opened it.

"What the clod is that?" Peridot creid.

"Ugh, gross, who thought it was a good idea to take a burrito home?" Jasper groaned, holding her home.

"It was a accident! I thought we would need it again." Lapis shrugged. She threw it in the trash.

"Hey, I never noticed that picture before now…" Connie said, pointing to a painting of Lapis, Jasper, Peridot, and Yellow Diamond above the fridge. They were in a boat and Peri was watching Yellow Diamond steer, Jasper held a shark  
in a choke hold, and Lapis was laughing as she held her arms out, Connie saw the water behind the boat was as big as a tsunami. They were wearing old clothes.

"Oh! That's us!" Peridot creid.

"Why is everyone dressed like old timey people?" Connie asked, looking closely.

"Well, that was the fashion of the time." Lapis replied, seeming lost in the memory with a smile.

"Wait… how old are you?!" Connie gasped.

"Much older than mortal humans." Peridot answered.

"You're immortal?!" Connie gasped.

"Yes, but we can still get hurt and we can still die and get hurt."

"That must be a ginormous cake!" Connie cried. Her smile faded. "Wait… I don't remember celebrating your birthdays…"

"That's because we don't do birthdays." Lapis shrugged.

"What?! But everyone deserves a birthday party!" Connie cried.

* * *

Later, they were sitting outside surrounded by decorations. Lapis sat on a makeshift throne and Connie crowned her. "Lapis is now the birthday queen!"

Lapis giggled while the other gems clapped.

"I hope you like it, Dad made me this outfit and it brings me special birthday luck every year." Connie explained. She started to sing, "It might as well be your birthday, so why don't we have a party? Even if your age isn't  
real, and your body's a illusion!" Lion was playing with a party hat and Connie grabbed it. "Lion!" She put it on his head. He tried to take it off. Connie sighed, "Lion, you're killing me!"

"Connie, you're trying, and I appreciate that… but aren't we a bit too mature for this human thing?" Peridot asked.

Lapis smirked and booped Peridot. "Boop!"

"STOP BEING STRANGE, LAPIS!" Peridot shrieked.

Lapis giggled and ran away playfully. Connie offered her a bat.

"Here! You can use this to hit-"

"I don't want to hit Peridot…. not with this, it's too hard, thanks for the offer though!" Lapis sighed.

"What?! No! It's for the piñata The Piñata is an artifact from ancient Mexico. I read all about it." Connie said happily.

She blindfolded Lapis, who swung the bat wildly. Connie held the piñata but squealed when Lapis was about to hit her. Connie threw the thing at Jasper who she hid behind. Lapis swung wildly. "Am I… getting close?!" She nearly hit Jasper  
in the cheek. "Are you trying to poof me?!"

Lapis peeked out of her blindfold and saw the piñata. She used her wings to fly up and slam the piñata out into the ocean. "What now?" She asked excitedly.

"Well, you were supposed to get candy when you hit it, but…" Connie bit her lip.

"Oh." Lapis said. "Guess I don't get this game."

"That's fine, Peridot's party will have more candy!" Connie laughed.

* * *

Connie had dressed Lion in a clown costume and Peridot frowned. "Um, why did you dress your animal like that?"

"It's funny!" Connie cried, honking the nose.

"How?" Peridot asked.

Connie hesitated. "Er… Oh! I have jokes! Why did Peridot throw butter out the window?"

"Why did you do that?" Lapis whispered

"I didn't do that!" Peri cried.

"To see a butter fly!" Connie laughed.

"Why would I ever-?! I demand you to stop lying!" Peridot growled.

"I-I'm not! Hm… Oh! Are you a fan of pie?" Connie asked.

"I suppose I am… Why?" Peridot asked.

"Because I made you a pie!" Connie cried. "Gee, I sure hope nothing happens to it!" She pulled a face as she was walking to Peridot. She tripped on purpose. Peridot caught her quickly. "Careful, Connie.-"

Connie slammed her face into the pie. "And here comes the laughs!" She cried.

"You… killed it?!" Peridot gasped. She ran to Jasper and whispered something to her.

"Speaking for Peri here, she wants to go home, and your jokes are insulting her…. but personally, I think they're hilarious." Jasper said.

"I have to make this next one is the best one." Connie whispered.

* * *

"You gotta love this!" Connie creid, pointing to three small books. "It's fairy tales from when I was younger! You get in read a story, we act it out, what more could you want?Dad used to do this for me every year. I outgrew  
it… but it's still fun for memories! So I see no reason to stop." Connie shrugged.

"I think this is why aging makes humans DIE!" Peridot whispered to Jasper.

Jasper bit her lip. "Connie… thanks for the birthday parties, but I think we're all partied out."

"What?" Connie gasped.

"Our age is an illusion, kid…. And we feel like this is more for human children…" Jasper said.

"Children? No, everybody, even adults, have birthdays! You're never too old!" Connie cried.

"We're just too big…" Jasper said.

"M-maybe I'm too old for this too?" Connie gasped. She tried to read the small book but it was the size of her palm.

"Are you… okay?" Lapis whispered.

"I just need time to think…" Connie sighed, getting up.

* * *

In the evening, Connie was walking down the boardwalk. "I never realized birthdays meant leaving things behind. All these parties, ugh, so embarrassing." She didn't notice her gem glow and she aged to a teenager. She saw Onion at the  
arcade. "Oh Onion, so young, so innocent." She walked away just as the boy banged open the place that kept the quarters.

* * *

Connie was in the bookstore and looked around. "Oh… I can't read children books like the Spirit Morth series! I should read… adult books…"

* * *

"Those books were… weird. But a girl on the edge of adulthood, needs to have her life together!" Connie creid, aging into a fully grown adult.

She went into a t-shirt shop and looked at the choices. "I need a job, but which? Surf master? No. Love doctor? Isn't really me." She spotted the perfect one. " Ah, now this is the job for me!"

She walked out with her new shirt that said Professional Beach Babe. "This day went by so fast! I need a new book to read."

* * *

She entered the bookstore as a older woman with a few tiny white streaks in her hair. She walked to the counter. "Do you have anything new? You know what I like."

Sadie turned and frowned. "You must be confused madam, I work here everyday and I've never seen your wrinkled face before."

"Yeah right, Sadie. Ha, ha. I used to make jokes…"

Lars walked up and was confused.

"But you know what? I've had a lot of time to think today and sometimes you gotta smarten up, act like an adult. Because one day, if you don't, everyone you know is gonna grow up without you. And then you won't have little Connie to pick on  
anymore because I'll be a grown up too." Connie huffed.

"Connie… who?" Lars asked.

"Connie Diamond Universe!" Connie yelled. "I'm going to the Fantasy section and you can't-" She turned to see her face reflected in a display case. "Ghaa!"

"Madam, are you okay?" Lars asked.

"I'm old!" Connie sobbed

"And crazy." Sadie said.

"I'm going to have to eat fiber cereal, all my teeth are gonna fall out, and then, I'll have to eat oatmeal and it'll be sugar-free!"Connie sobbed, sitting down on a chair. She aged more with more streaks coming to her hair. "I  
need to reverse this!" Lars walked up to comfort her and Connie gasped. "I need, a "reverse birthday"... the queen costume." She turned to Lars and Sadie. "Will you help me into my birthday suit?"

Lars expression went blank and Sadie held back laughs.

* * *

"Get out of here!" Lars yelled a few minutes later, chasing her out with a stool.

Connie's hair went completely white and she fell. There was a noise and Connie glanced up. Lion was there!

"Lion…" She wheezed.

The lion picked her up and ran her to the temple.

* * *

Peridot used her metal powers to lift up a table and sighed. "Despite the strangeness, this was… fun."

Lapis saw Jasper with the birthday suit still on. "You know you don't have to wear that."

"It makes me feel… awesome." Jasper whispered.

Lion suddenly ran to them with Connie and dropped her in front of them.

"Connie!" Peridot yelled, running to her. She put her hand to Connie's heart. "Her heart rate's quickly receding!"

"Can we help at all?!" Lapis creid.

"My birthday suit might help…" Connie whispered.

Jasper threw off the cape and crown and put them on Connie. Nothing happened!

"Thanks guys, but I guess this suit's all out of birthday magic. We had a good run, didn't we?" Connie sighed.

"More birthdays, NOW!" Jasper yelled.

Connie looked up to see Lapis reading a fairytale and Lapis looked at her. "This'll make you better, won't it?!"

Connie grew older still.

"Peri, come on!" Lapis creid. She shoved Peridot who was now in a clown coustme at Connie.

"I can't! My little human/gem is dying! This won't help!" Peridot snarled through tears, holding a pie.

"She's our gem too! You must." Jasper called.

Peridot sniffed away tears and looked at Connie. "Oh, look, I have what, um, what appears to be a delicious pie. I sincerely hope nothing happens to-" Peri started to sob and dropped the pie. "Oh, Connie! You've got me expressing  
my emotions!"

"Are you trying to kill her faster?!" Lapis creid.

Peridot sniffed and ran to Lapis, hugging her tightly.

Jasper walked up and grabbed Connie. She shook her violently, much to the others horror.

"What are you doing?!" Peri yelled.

"Jasper, stop… STOP!" Lapis screamed, pulling at the gem.

The leader turned, putting Connie down. "I thought… violence always wins…"

The gems started arguing as Connie took her last breaths. "Would you guys, just please," She turned to a adult again. "Control yourselves?!" The gems turned in surprise. "Oh no." She turned into a teen. "Oh, I'm  
sorry, I shouldn't have yelled. But I can't stand to see you," she was an adult again, "freaking out like this!"

"Connie! You're changing!" Jasper cried.

"Your age is fluctuating, I think your gem is reacting to your state of mind!" Peridot gasped.

"Stop feeling old, please!" Lapis pleaded.

"But I bothered you guys and wasted your time!" Teen Connie creid. She turned into the old woman. "We all have such little time…"

"Connie!" The gems creid.

"You have to feel like yourself! Sweet and considerate and only occasionally a nerd, but it's like me, so I don't care!" Peridot sobbed.

"Y-you really think I'm all those things?" Connie whispered.

"Of course!" Jasper cried.

"Why else would you throw us all those parties?" Lapis whispered.

"Oh! I guess I am… pretty great." Connie turned back to her real self.

"Connie!" Lapis cried, her and Peridot running to the girl, they hugged her.

"We'll work on the rest later." Jasper chuckled.

Connie looked down and saw her legs were abnormally long. "Oh… yeah." 


	14. Sadie and the Cool Kids

The gems were in a swap and stared down at the gross moss. "This is horrible." Jasper sighed.

Connie attempted to touch it but Lapis grabbed her. "Don't touch that, Connie!"

"What's wrong?" Connie asked. She turned to see a log go near the moss and the moss consumed it. "Oh.."

"Yellow raised this moss… but it's gotten out of control!" Peridot exclaimed.

"My mother planted this?" Connie asked.

"Yes, though short tempered at times, she had a soft side for living things…. She thought, if she had beauty inside her as we told her, then most everything else would too." Peridot said with a wistful smile. "And now  
it's grown wild without her!"

"It's lost…" Connie whispered sadly.

"It's pretty gross to me." Lapis shrugged.

"Yellow loved it anyway. Yellow Diamond used to climb that hill every spring and tend to the moss at the top." Peri sighed. "I'm glad I'm always prepared!" Her gem glowed. Connie turned to Lapis. "This is why I get  
up in the morning!"

The glow faded and a roll of police tape landed in Peridot's hands.

"Police tape?" Connie asked.

"Ha, yes! Why use magic when you can use logic?! Humans will just see this and walk away!" Peridot explained.

They covered the place with police tape. Peridot tied a bow and smiled. "Peri perfect…" She sighed. "Now we can get this moss on the hill!"

"I'm… kinda hungry." Connie whispered.

Peridot groaned. "Sometimes I forget humans need energy…"

* * *

Connie skipped to the Pizza place and saw Sadie leaning against the wall. "Sadie? Sadie! Hi!" She waved.

Sadie gave a groan. "Why now?"

"I'm running in for a hug!" Connie ran to her, since Sadie was… kinda one of her friends. "From Downtown!"

"No, Connie!" Sadie creid. "Don't touch me!"

Connie slowed. She ran to Sadie and patted her head. "There!"

Sadie gave a grumble.

"So, why aren't you at the bookstore? Or the Big Doughnut?" Connie asked.

"My whole life doesn't revolve around work." Sadie said, smiling. "I do… other things."

Connie stared for a moment then spoke. "Like… standing against this wall?"

"What does it look like?" Sadie snapped, going back to the wall.

"You don't seem to be doing much…"

"That's the plan, Connie!" Sadie said. "Just playing it cool today, you know?"

"We are so much alike." Connie giggled.

"Excuse me?" Sadie whispered.

"You want to get a fresh pizza right out of the oven, but you don't want to seem too desperate, right? Well, there's no need to be ashamed. Heh, I've seen Steven waltz in here like there's not a care in the world!" Connie cried.  
She walked to the door.

"Connie! Don't go in there!" Sadie cried. Connie peeked in the window. She saw Kiki's sister, and her friends hanging out. "That's Kiki's sister, and her friends!"

"Jenny, Sour Cream, and Buck Dewey." Sadie whispered.

"You know them?"

"No, but I will soon!"

"I'm not one to socialize… but maybe you can just talk to them?" Connie asked.

"T-T-That's not how these things work, Connie! The plan is to keep it cool and let them come to me." Sadie said.

"Here they come." Jenny, Sour Cream and Buck left.

"Look natural!" Sadie hissed.

"Tell Dad I'll be back later." Jenny said to her twin sister. They walked away.

"I don't think they saw you." Connie said.

"Connie, you were blocking me with your... big head!"

Connie touched her head. "Sorry, I'll just… go tell them to look over here." She slowly walked away, almost as nervous as Sadie.

"Connie, no, don't go over there!" Sadie hissed. "I hate you!"

Connie walked to the teens and smiled nervously. "Er, hey! I'm.. Connie."

They turned, she offered her hand. Buck shook it. "My name's Buck."

"Sour Cream." Sour Cream said.

"I'm Jenny." Jenny shook her hand.

Sadie was sweating while watching them nearby. "Aah, she's gonna wreck everything! What are they saying? I can't hear them!"

She saw Connie giggling.

"Ugh! Why is she laughing?! No! My life is horrible!" Sadie sobbed.

Connie ran up to her. "Sadie!"

"Oh, Connie! H-hey!"

"They offered us a ride." Connie said.

"Huh? W-Wait a minute, they— you—? Connie, you got lucky. So please don't ruin this with any of your lame schtick." Sadie sighed.

Connie gave a thumbs up and Sadie face palmed.

They sat in Jenny's car. Connie fist pumped in the middle seat.

"Where did you get that dress, Connie?" Jenny asked, glancing back from the driver's seat.

"I have no idea."

"Do you like my shirt?" Sadie asked, pointing to the shirt with a doughnut on it.

"Meh, I don't like doughnuts very much." Jenny said, turning away.

"Oh! Yeah, doughnuts are gross!" Sadie laughed.

"Some are okay." Jenny shrugged.

The engine reved up and Connie gasped. "Seat belts! Put on your seat belts!"

"Connie, don't be weird!" Sadie cried.

"There's nothing weird about seatbelt safety." Sour Cream said.

"Car does not move 'till we're all buckled up." Jenny said. They all buckled up.

"Yeah, now let's get some spaced out beats up in here." Sour Cream turned on the radio. "Yeah, I could rave to this." He waved his arms in front of him.

"Hey, this car is really cool Jenny." Sadie said.

"It's just the delivery car for my Dad's lame shop. Makes me smell like pizza. Where to, y'all?" Jenny asked.

"I don't even know." Buck said.

"Can we go to the bookstore?" Connie squealed. They drove there.

"This old place?" Jenny sighed.

"I don't really like… books." Buck said.

Sadie covered Connie gasp of horror.

They drove near the city park. They saw Mayor Dewey doing a rally.

"... Another reason you should re-elect me, I love babies." The mayor said. "Will you look at that, a baby!" He cried as his aid held a ugly baby. (  
"Gonna kiss it…" He kissed the baby and the crowd applauded.

"Adorable!" Connie cried.

"Man, he never kisses me like that." Buck said.

"I'm so sorry!" Sadie gasped.

"There's no reason to be sorry. The lack of daddy kisses in my life made me who I am." Buck said.

They drove out of town. "Oh my gosh guys, we should check out Dead Man's Mouth." Jenny said.

"What's Dead Man's Mouth?" Connie whispered.

"Oh it's this lake where some dude died, or it looks like a mouth? I forget the specifics." Buck said.

"Dead Man's Mouth. Here. We. Come." Jenny said. They sped off.

"Here we are!" Jenny announced.

Connie felt her blood go cold seeing the police tape. "Er, you know what? I know this place may seem cool, but it's actually a lot less cool than you think. W-why don't we just go have some more fun at the boardwalk?" She cried.

"Connie, stop being lame." Sadie growled. She got out. "Let's check this place out!" Connie saw that Sadie was nervous too, but she didn't try to show it.

The kids came to the police tape.

"Oh right! The police tape! No one would go so far as to-" Connie was interrupted when Sour Cream ripped it through. Connie gaped in horror.

They walked through.

"Who wants to go for a swim?" Jenny asked.

Connie bit her lip and glanced at the moss. It seemed to twitch at her.

The kids started taking off coats.

Connie stopped Sadie. "Sadie, don't! It's too dangerous!" She breathed.

"Connie, are you trying to scare us?" Jenny laughed.

"Creating an atmosphere, I like it." Buck said.

"Oooh!" Sour Cream laughed.

The kids jumped in. Sadie was going to go after them but Connie grabbed her. "Stop!"

"What are you-" They stopped when they saw the others get indulged in moss.

The girls screamed in horror and fell back.

"What is that?!" Sadie cried.

"It's some magic moss my mother planted!" Connie yelled.

"Your mom?" Sadie gasped.

Suddenly the others reemerged, covered in moss and they struggled towards the lake's edge. They collapsed on its shore and the moss covered them entirely.

"Oh no!" Sadie cried. "Hang on!" She and Connie ran to help them. They pulled at the moss but with no avail.

Connie gasped and glanced at the hill in the distance. "Sadie, I know what to do!"

Sadie ignored her though and turned with tears in her eyes. "This is all your fault! I knew if something went wrong today it would be because of you! Now these people are going to die! All because of your... weird mom!" Sadie yelled.

Connie gasped, her eyes widened. She narrowed them and stomped up to Sadie, the teen fell back. "What do you know about my mom?!" Connie snarled. "I DIDN'T EVEN GET TO KNOW MY MOM!" She screamed with tears in her eyes.  
"But I do know that she saw beauty in everything, even stuff like this," The girl pointed to the moss. "And even in jerks like you!"

Sadie looked ashamed and Connie's anger faded. "Now help me, please…" She whispered weakly.

Sadie and Connie dragged the others to the car. They got in. Sadie hesitated.

"Sadie, what are you waiting for?!" Connie cried.

"I don't know how to drive a stick-shift." Sadie sighed.

"I'll work the stick, you just keep us on the road!" Connie cried.

"Okay! Let's go!" Sadie turned the key.

Connie moved the stick and they jolted forward into a bush.

"Reverse, Connie!" Sadie cried.

"Oh! I thought the R meant react, like react to the gas and go forward!"

"Nothing is that complicated!" Sadie yelled. They sped up and the car zoomed away.

"Jenny's gonna kill me! Connie, what happens when the moss reach the hill?!" Sadie asked.

"Um, I don't exactly… know." Connie said.

"WHAT?!" Sadie screamed.

"That's just where the moss wants to be!"

The moss suddenly started to engulf the whole car including the girls.

They reached the hill after swerving the car and screaming.

The girls ran up the hill but the moss kept coming up their bodies.

"I'm getting stuck!" Sadie cried.

"Don't give up!" Connie yelled.

They were stuck at the top of the hill, breathing their final breaths.

"Connie?" Sadie asked.

"What?" Connie gasped.

"I hate this…"

They were suddenly engulfed fully, Connie screaming for Sadie and reaching out, but it was too late.

The sun suddenly broke through clouds and rained upon the people. The moss evaporated into beautiful yellow blossoms with yellow gems in the center. Connie gasped, choking for air. She helped Sadie up and brushed blossoms from her hair.

"The moss… was just trying to bloom." Connie whispered.

The other teens walked up.

"What happened?" Jenny asked.

"I think I died…" Sour Cream said.

They then saw the blossoms raining gently on the town. They gasped.

"You can see all of Beach City from here…" Sour Cream said.

"It's beautiful." Buck whispered.

"Sure… but how did we get here?"

"Connie-" Sadie started.

"Sadie drove you all here!" Connie blurted out.

The kids murmured in approval.

"I can totally rave to this." Sour Cream said. He started to rave and the others cheered. Connie offered a hug and Sadie smiled. She patted her on her head. Connie smiled back and patted her head back. "Okay, now it's getting  
weird." Sadie muttered. 


	15. Onion Trade

It was a peaceful day in Beach City and Lapis was wading in the water, enjoying it.

"Lapis!" Connie yelled, running to her.

She turned and Connie breathed for air. "H-Have you seen a little man figurine anywhere?"

"I'm afraid not. What do you need it for?" Lapis asked, coming out.

Suddenly, they heard a sigh.

"Connie, why must you lose everything?" Peridot groaned, holding onto her pole as she made it float to them.

"Cut her some slack! I lose stuff all the time, but I always find them in my room." Lapis said.

"Then why haven't you found my laptop?" Peridot grunted.

"I… haven't looked for it."

"Look for it now!" Peridot cried.

"You look for it!"

"Your room is water! Just water!"

Connie sighed and slumped away.

"Connie's sad!" Lapis gasped.

"Why?" Peridot asked, turning to her.

"I'm fine, just got to break the bad news to my dad…" Connie whispered.

* * *

Connie ran up to the police station and gasped as she was nearly blinded by a light. "Ghaa!"

"Connie?" Doug gasped. "You look upset…"

"I... lost something... something precious." Connie whispered.

"Your innocence?" Doug gasped.

"I lost that figurine, Dad." Doug stared at her. "You know, the one you got me on our special day at the beach? It was the same figurines you got my age, and you bought one for me. Do you remember?"

"Oh, was this the same day we ate that awesome funnel cake?" Doug asked.

"What?"

"That funnel cake, it was amazing! Ha, I even kept the plate. Come on!"

* * *

Doug drove her to the storage lot he owned and opened it.

"Ah, let's see here. Got some cans, napkins, oh, a yo-yo! A book about yo-yo tricks, a sandwich I've been meaning to catch up on. ... Wait. What's your story again?" Doug asked.

"I lost my figurine, its very precious to me… his name is...uh…"

"Ranger Guy." Doug answered.

"Right!"

Doug smiled and pulled out a bag that jangled. "Here's a bag of quarters, you can get all the G.U.Y.S you want!"

"What?"

"The figurine, Connie! If you care for it so much, why don't you remember it's name?"

Connie then realized it wasn't about the toy, nor the name that went with it, it was about the memories… "Thank you…" She whispered.

"What was that?"

"THANK YOU!"

* * *

Connie ran to a dispenser of the toys and put in a quarter. "Come on Ranger Guy!"

It lit up one square and said, "Dave Guy!" Connie picked up the capsule.

"Dave… Guy?" Connie whispered. She looked at the boring toy and sighed. "Dave Guy doesn't hold a memory, Ranger Guy does!" Connie kicked the thing then inserted another quarter, then another, and another. Finally, after 30 Dave  
Guys, the machine said, "This machine is out of G.U.Y.S. Please try again another time."

Connie cried out in annoyance but the vending machine near her shook. Little Onion suddenly came out of the hatch with a bag of chips.

"Oh, hello Onion, what are you doing?" Connie asked.

The boy ignored her. He was walking away when Connie saw a Ranger Guy in his back pocket.

"He has a Ranger Guy?!" Connie gasped. She packed up all of her Dave Guys and ran after Onion. "Wait up! Let's trade!" She called.

She then saw he was in Suitcase Sam's. She watched from the window as Onion fought with the man. "I suppose they're haggling over something…"

The man gave Onion his lunch and Onion left.

Connie followed him to see the boy sitting on the dock. He took out a cheeseburger and Connie's mouth watered. The boy started to take off the components and the girl gasped.

A boat suddenly docked and a pale man with a beard and a yellow rain slicker hopped off and greeted the boy.

"Is that… Onion's dad?" Connie whispered.

She watched the two communicate in murmurs. "I guess… they don't need words…"

She watched the man jump on the boat and sail away, waving goodbye to his son. "Does Onion just sit around and wait for his dad all day?" She then saw the toy in the boy's pocket and remembered her own father.

"Onion!" She called, running to him. Onion turned.

"How are you?"

He shrugged.

"Okay, well, you know the little man in your pocket?"

He pulled it out.

"Yes! That's it! How would you like to trade that boring old Ranger Guy for a brand new, mint in box, Dave Guy?" Connie asked, showing it.

The boy shook his head and made a hand gesture, indicating he wanted more.

"What? You want more?" Connie gasped. "Like, two more? Five more? Ten more? Twenty more? This whole bag? All thirty of these Dave Guys for just one Ranger Guy!"

The boy shook his head again, and made the same gesture.

"B-b there aren't anymore. The machine is empty; I bought them all!" Connie cried.

Onion ignored her and walked away.

"Wait!" Connie yelled.

* * *

"Ugh, stupid figurine… You have no future, your hair cut's gross, you smell bad." Connie growled.

Lapis turned to her at the beach. "Connie, why are you saying such rude things?"

"This thing… I can't trade thirty of these with Onion just to get one of the Ranger Guy!"

"I see you know his name now?" Lapis smirked.

"Uh-huh." Connie sighed, sitting down on the sand.

Lapis frowned then gasped. "Oh, here!" She cried, pulling out a wand of some sort from her hair and giving it to Connie.

"What is this?" Connie asked.

"Peri's replicator wand… It can replicate anything you want." Lapis smiled with a wink.

"And… you've had it in your hair all day?" Connie asked.

"No, I was looking for Peri's precious laptop and found it instead."

Connie nodded in thanks and was about to walk away when Lapis grabbed her shoulder.

"Be wise with it, Connie, think about what you do." Lapis said.

"Alright."

* * *

Onion threw packets of ketchup in the air, and left them lying on the ground. He walked away to get on his moped, and destroyed the packets as he did tricks. He jumped off the moped and watched it blow up, exploding in flames. He watched  
until he heard a gasp of shock. He turned to Connie, who looked a bit frightened.

"Onion… I still want to trade, okay?" Connie asked. She replicated a Dave Guy and sent it to Onion. "That's 31…"

Onion's eyes widened slightly, seeing her trembling hand hold the wand.

"You want more?" Connie cried. She took it the wand as he walked stoically towards her. "31? 32? 33? 34? 35? 36? 37? 38? 39?"

He stalked up to the girl and she yelled, "40!"

The last one came out and Onion slammed it aside. Connie tried to hold back fear in her voice, "Enough! What is it that you want?!"

The boy pulled out the toy, and pointed at the wand. Connie looked at it.

"This? You want… _this_ for that little man?"

Onion nodded and attempted to swipe it away but Connie flinched. "I… No. You can't have it! I-I won't give it to you!"

He suddenly grabbed her wrist and twisted it so hard she yelped in pain and released the wand. The boy's eyes dilated and he turned horrific. Connie felt her body go cold as he dropped the toy in her aching palm.

* * *

"H-he's a human child… He couldn't know how to use it, right?" Connie whispered, looking at Ranger Guy on the beach. "Then again, I did-" Suddenly, a capsule hit her on the head. She saw it was Dave Guy and gasped. "What  
in the world?!" She saw waves of them coming closer. "Onion."

* * *

The gems saw Onion standing on a pile of Dave Guys.

"How did that human boy get my replicator?!" Peridot cried.

"Um… This is my fault, but aren't these Connie's dolls?" Lapis asked.

"I like to call them figurines." Connie sighed, popping out of the mountains.

"Explain this at once!" Peri cried.

"I traded that Replicator for Ranger Guy…."

"Connie, why didn't you just replicate your thing?"

Connie face palmed.

"Let's go before this gets any worse." Jasper sighed.

They walked away but Lapis slipped and got stuck in the capsules. "Ugh, how do you move in these?! My wings aren't working…"

"Try to act like a rich duck…" Connie whispered, sinking into it.

Lapis stared after her.

Doug popped his head up. "Oh my gosh, I was just trying to get some ice cream!"

Lapis waved. "Hi Doug."

"Um, what's going on?!" Doug gasped.

"Er, we're in trouble… but what else is new?" Lapis laughed.

Meanwhile, Jasper and Peridot climbed up a mountain of toys to see Onion.

"Little boy, give that back, that doesn't belong to you!" Jasper yelled.

Onion turned to her and shot capsules out of his wand. Jasper made her helmet and blocked them.

The boy turned to see something they couldn't block. He shot at it and Peridot gasped. "What do he shoot?!"

Onion replicated a car over them and Jasper shoved Peridot under, grabbing the vehicle. The boy made more and covered Jasper.

"At least it stopped raining toys." Doug said to Lapis. The woman gasped in horror, "Look out!" She shoved the man into the toys while she ducked, narrowly avoiding a car hurled at her.

Meanwhile, Connie snuck up on Onion who was on top of a pile of the capsules.

"ONION!" She cried, tackling him.

"Onion, please stop! Let's trade back, okay?! Take this figurine, he's the apparently best. He-" Connie glanced at the toy's feet and saw the intials C.U on them. She gasped. "This is mine! You traded me my own thing! Our trade  
didn't count!" She snatched the wand and threw it to the ground.

Jasper smashed the thing.

"My stuff always gets ruined!" Peridot sighed, as the piles went away.

* * *

"Onion," Connie sighed later at the pier. "I think I know why you took my figurine… I bet you get pretty lonely waiting for your dad all day." The boy nodded. "You were probably really bored too." He nodded once more.  
"And because you missed your dad, you took my figurine, which is symbolic of the relationship I have with my dad." The boy shook his head. "Oh, just the first thing?"

He nodded.

"Well, here." She bent down and gave him the toy. "You need him more than I do."

She watched him happily run away.

"That was pretty cool what you did back there." Doug smiled, wrapping his arm around his daughter.

"Thank you." Connie laughed.

"But you went through all that trouble for a toy?"

"It was more about the memories than the toy. Now we have new memories— horrific, and traumatic memories…." Connie said happily.

"That's right, kiddo." Doug laughed as he hugged her close and they walked her home. 


	16. Connie The Sword Fighter

It was raining and the gems were watching a movie, 'Lonely Blade IV'

Connie ate popcorn and watched in anticipation.

She watched Lonely Blade speak Japanese, which translated to, "It was you! You were the one who killed my brother. Cursing me to fight alone forever!"

"He's so lonely!" Connie cried through tears.

"You think you can defeat me? The President of the Shadow Samurai Government?!" A janitor laughed.

"What?!" Connie choked on popcorn on Jasper's head. "The janitor is the evil samurai president?! That's nuts!"

"Hm, pathetic! That clod was spying on this hero the whole time! He was mopping in the back of every scene someone engaged combat! He's on the poster!" Peridot cried, showing Connie it.

"Oh." Connie blushed.

They turned to the screen and saw Lonely Blade speak, "For my honor and for my brother! I will strike you down! Boomerang Blade!" The man swung his blade.

"Piercing Shadow of a Thousand... Screams!" The other cried.

"Ugh, their form is atrocious!" Peridot said.

Jasper shushed her but Connie laughed.

"If you ever want to see a demonstration of true amazingness and proper sword techniques, I'd be happy to show you." Peridot felt Connie's dark hair brush her cheek, and turned to see Connie looking adorable with diamonds in her eyes. "You  
want it right now?"

* * *

They sat in a arena as Peridot explained.

She held two swords and smiled. "Alright, in order to give a proper demonstration I'm going to need a sparring partner."

Connie immediately raised her hand but Jasper put it down. "Luckily, I have the perfect candidate… if you're ready, Lapis."

They looked at Lapis who blushed. "Er, almost…"

Her gem added another drop of water to something she had made and it floated next to Peridot, it being a water twin.

"You see, I have given this vessel of water complete control over itself, so it can act on its own accord… not be used for… horrible things." Lapis shuttered slightly, in memory of something. Connie touched her shoulder and the gem smiled once  
more. "It has the same skills and personality as Peri, but she was designed to fight, not to play around with."

"Lapis," Jasper hissed. "you haven't tried this before-"

"And there's a first time for everything! You know that." Lapis snapped.

Connie gasped in excitement.

"Thanks. Now, shall we began?" Peri asked.

She gave the water vessel a sword.

"I… have a bad feeling… Can't you control it?" Jasper asked Lapis softly.

"I could… but no thing deserves to be controlled, used… or taken over as time goes by." Lapis hissed.

Jasper realized what she was getting at, and it was a touchy subject… "Okay, I get it… I'll lay off."

Peridot smirked. "Ready!"

They started to duel.

"I see no openings. No matter," laughed the water Peri in Peri's voice. "I shall soon defeat you, clod!"

"You're the cl-" Peridot stopped from calling herself a clod. "You're the Peridot who will end!"

They continued to fight.

"Go Peridot!" Connie cheered.

Distracted by the girl's cheers, Peridot turned slightly. The water double quickly disarmed her.

"Ha, ha!" Water Peri laughed. Lapis narrowed her eyes slightly.

Peridot quickly slid under the attack and grabbed her sword.

Peri dodged more and more until she stabbed Water Peri. The water splashed away. Lapis pushed away her doubts and reassembled it.

Connie ran down and cheered. "Good job!"

"Heh, what did you expect?" Peridot teased.

"Well, clod? Fight me!" Water Peri said.

Connie blushed. "C-Could you teach me the basics?"

Peridot nodded. "Of course. Water Peri, go easy please!"

"Never!" Water Peri said.

Lapis attempted to use her powers but Water Peridot turned to her. "If you don't want me to feel like a slave, dear creator, I suggest you not." Lapis flinched slightly.

"It's okay, I'll show this clod who's the real master here." Peridot said.

Water Peridot gave a scoff but went easy, showing a basic technique.

"Do you see what I'm doing with my feet, Connie? Notice where I keep my center of gravity." Peridot said.

Connie nodded and started to do the same.

"Nice, Connie! You're a natural kid!" Jasper laughed.

"You have to wait for the perfect moment to-" Peridot started, then a sword stabbed her through.

Lapis felt her head go dizzy and screamed in surprise. Water Peri watched her double cry out, and she poofed. The imposter smiled. "As that weak clod was saying, like for the perfect moment to strike." Connie gasped in horror and fell back  
in fear and sadness. "Y-you killed her?!"

The double smirked and Lapis flew to the ground next to Connie. "I'm so sorry! This is all my fault." She glanced at her creation with disdain. "This is not what you were made for!" She yelled. The copy stared at her. "And what were you made  
for, my mistress?"

Lapis gasped and covered her mouth. "I-I…"

"Lapis-" Jasper started.

"I have to go." Lapis whispered. She flew away.

"Lapis?!" Connie creid. She then looked at the gem, Peri's gem, in her hands. "Peridot…"

"It's okay, Connie. Peri is fine." Jasper said reassuringly.

"What do you mean?"

"Sometimes, if our bodies are badly damaged, we release our physical forms and retreat to our gems to regenerate." Jasper explained.

"And Lapis, is she… okay?" Connie whispered.

"Lapis… has a lot of memories, Connie. She was made… somewhere that I hope you'll never find. It haunts her…" Jasper sighed.

Connie looked at the sky. "Will she come back?"

"She will some time." Jasper exhaled.

* * *

It had been two whole weeks, Peridot had not regenerated and Lapis hadn't come home yet…

"Peridot, come home soon." Connie sighed.

She suddenly heard a laugh and gasped. She turned to see Water Peridot in a corner, seeming to like watching her old opponent poofed.

Connie walked to it. "Um, hi… Are you anything like Peri?"

The Water being shrugged. "I don't know. I do look like that insufficient clod though, don't I?"

"Come on, I can teach you to act like her!" Connie laughed.

She pulled the vessel to her room and pointed to the organized things. "Peridot likes to dismantle my stuff for her gadgets, and I clean it up! Want to try?" Connie asked, showing a clockwork toy. The double stabbed it through. "I don't trifle  
with such insignificant things."

Connie pulled her outside the beach house after replacing her sword with a umbrella. She saw very faintly in the distance a sobbing figure on the beach. "Lapis is back? Oh, maybe we should leave her be for now." Connie assumed.

Water Peridot walked to confront her creator but Connie grabbed her. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to tease that weak clod." Water Peri said.

"Peridot would never do that! Get away from me, and don't touch my friends, you hear?!" Connie cried, running away, about to cry.

She sat in the house and looked at Peridot's gem. "How long do you think Lapis will be gone, Peri? If she were here, that imposter would be gone… but she isn't. I wish I had someone to talk to."

She then heard a flash of lightning and turned to see Water Peridot. She screamed in horror.

"You will fight me, Connie Universe, yes?" The double asked.

"N-no! Why would I?!" Connie cried.

She ran away but Water Peri caught up. The double picked Connie up by her shirt collar and the girl struggled. She then saw a mop nearby. She kicked her foot up after latching it under the mop. Connie grabbed the handle and started to duel, making  
the water release her. They fought.

"Heh, heh, you may have a natural talent, child, but you are no match for the great Peridot!" The Water double cackled.

Connie found that she had a naturalknack for sword fighting, this… this was better than her shield!

"You're… not… Peridot!" Connie screamed, stabbing the water.

Lapis suddenly landed beside her and the water finally went back to her gem. "Connie… I am so sorry. I should've never let my emotions take over…" The woman sighed.

Jasper ran in, panting. "I heard screaming, is everyone alright?"

"W-we're fine." Connie smiled weakly.

Jasper nodded in content.

"I might miss Peridot a whole lot, but, sometimes you just have to accept things the way they are before you-" There was a sudden glow and Connie saw Peri's gem float in the air. It regenerated Peridot and her appearance had altered slightly. Her  
hair was now fully star shaped and her pants had stars at the knees.

"What… happened?" Peridot groaned, seeing the mess. Connie ran into a hug. "You're home!"

"Connie, you seemed to like sword training," Jasper mentioned.

"I do! I like sword a lot now, it felt natural…" Connie blushed.

"Hm…" Peridot said. "I believe your mother had a sword…"

"She did?!" Connie cried.

* * *

 **Okay, a little explaininghere. To give you a heads up, Connie's main weapon will** _ **not**_ **be her shield. After I had made the pilot chapter did I think Connie would be better with her sword, but had already made it her shield. I will not change the first chapter, but I will make adjustments to** _ **new**_ **chapters to fit the idea.**


	17. Lion 2: The Movie

Connie and Steven happily watched a trailer on his phone.

" _Some say._." A narrator said. There was flashes of a city on fire. " _A cat can only have…_ " They saw men flying in helicopters. " _nine lives…_ " They saw a robotic cat look up. " _unless you're_ …"  
A young boy looked at the cat and smirked. The cat nodded. " _CATCOPTER 3, IN 3D_!" The cat flew to a enemy and shot a missile from it's butt. " _This February, the fur hits the fan._ "

Connie gasped in wonder. "Steven, that was incredible! I can see why you like this."

"Yeah! It has cats and robots and powerful kids, it's amazing!" Steven creid. ""Did you see where the missile came out of?"

Connie giggled. "Uh-huh!"

The warp pad lit up and the Crystal Temps appeared, posing. Steven's eyes turned to stars. "Cool…"

"Oh, hello." Jasper said.

"Ah, Steven, you're here? I… I didn't expect that at all!" Peridot cried nervously.

"We're going to watch a movie about a helicopter cat!" Connie squealed. "Show them, Steven!"

The boy grinned. "Yeah! It has lots of explosions and stuff!" He showed his phone to them and Lapis smiled. "Oh, that's easy!" She shape shifted into a double of Catcopter.

Steven looked excited.

"Who needs to see movies when you can be one?" Lapis giggled. She turned back to herself.

"Oh, Lapis!" Connie laughed. "Steven says movies can be magic!"

"Not anymore." Steven whispered in awe.

Connie skipped up to her backpack. "We're bringing our own snacks!" She cried.

Steven nodded then frowned. "How are we going to get there? The theater's pretty far away…"

"We're riding… in style."

* * *

Steven was gaping while Connie cried out, "Lion!"

She presented her bright yellow lion.

"You have a lion?!" Steven yelled in awe.

"Yeah! Do you want to pet-"

Steven ran up and hugged the lion's mane. "It's so soft!"

"He kinda does what he wants." Connie giggled.

"Connie, you're life is so cool and magic packed!" Steven sighed. "The most exciting thing I do is help my dad at the carwash." He picked up a round leaf and guarded himself with it. "Hubbing the tires," He waved the  
leaf in a circular motion. "Hosing the car," He swiftly moved the leaf. "and my fav, sponge destruction bomb!" He yelled, thrusting the leaf shield in front of him.

"Whoa… Car washes are awesome!" Connie creid.

"My dad and I made that last one up together." Steven blushed.

Connie heard Lion yawn. "I think he's saying to go."

They climbed on his back, Connie in the front. "Let's go to the movies!" She cried. The lion went up… and nothing happened.

"And… go!" Connie cried.

Lion yawned.

"Lion, please take us to the movie?" Connie pleaded. She turned to Steven. "Er, sorry… He doesn't have much training… but then again, neither am I."

Lion's ear twitched. He suddenly roared and ran off. The children laughed in joy .

Lion turned to the ocean and ran to it.

"Lion?" Connie gasped. "Lion, don't go in the ocean!" She yelled.

The lion leapt onto the water and Connie realized they hadn't sunk. They looked down to see they were walking on water!

"That's so cool!" Steven yelled.

"Why don't you tell me the things you do?!" Connie squealed to Lion as he bolted off. The children laughed with glee. Connie brushed her hair out of Steven's face and her eyes were shimmering. He blushed. They went past a boat  
of shocked sailors and laughed.

"Hey Connie," Steven yelled. "does Lion know where's he's going? I mean… he is a magic lion but he's not getting anywhere close!"

"Um, maybe this is… a short cut?" Connie chuckled nervously.

Lion suddenly roared a a ring of yellow came from his mouth. A portal appeared. Connie and Steven screamed in horror as he leapt in.

"Cool! Does he do stuff like this all the time?!" Steven asked.

"Well…" Connie blushed.

"I expect he does!"

Lion landed in a room with a platform in the center. Connie looked around.

"Are you okay?" Connie sighed in worry, helping Steven up.

"That… was the coolest thing I've ever seen."

Lion roared quietly and got their attention. He stepped near the platform.

"Where are you going?" Connie asked, getting up and chasing after Lion up some stairs. Steven followed and looked around in amazement. "Is this one of the magic gem places you've been telling me about?"

Connie's foot touched the platform and it sprang to life. She gasped and watched a yellow hand pedestal with her mother's symbol on it come up. "Yep… Magic gem place."

They ran to the pedestal.

"Lion, I'm normally all about this stuff, but we need to get to the movies." Connie said.

Lion roared softly.

"What does that even mean?!" Connie creid in agony. Steven bent down to look at the pedestal.

Steven put his hand on the structure and moved it along. "Connie… what if this has something to do with your magical destiny?" He said with stars in his eyes.

"Well, maybe it does, but if we don't hurry, we're gonna miss the commercials, and then we might miss the previews, and we still have to find the perfect seats, near the front but not too close." Steven grabbed her hand and placed  
it on the pedestal. The children gasped as the space around them turned white.

"It definitely likes you!" Steven gasped.

Connie tried to get her hand off but couldn't. "Uh… my hand's stuck!" She cried out.

Steven turned to her and tried to help her get it off. They grunted in pain as they pulled harder, sweat coming down their faces.

"Man, that's stuck on good!" Steven panted. "Oh no, we're gonna have to chop it off!"

"WHAT?!" Connie cried.

Suddenly, a whole display of swords shot out of the platform.

"Whoa! Swords!" Steven creid.

"No!" Connie yelled. The swords went back.

"How did you do that?!" Steven gasped.

"I don't know…" Connie whispered.

"Can you do it again?" Steven whispered with stars in his eyes.

"Er, I can sure try!" Connie laughed. She tried certain things but nothing worked.

Steven accidentally poked her in the shoulder and she glanced at him. "What are you-"

He pulled her ear and she flinched in pain. "Hey!"

He looked at her. "Hm… maybe if I…" He poked her tummy and she giggled. "Hey! That tickles!" She laughed sweetly.

Suddenly, a whole array of armor rose up.

They gasped in wonder.

Connie turned to Steven with diamonds in her eyes. "Press my nose!" She cried.

Steven booped it and three electric cannons rose from the platform.

"Next!" Steven creid. He grabbed the corners of Connie's mouth and pulled. A bunch of axes came up.

"Axes!" They creid.

"Giant chain balls!"

"A giant…"

Connie tilted her head. "penny?"

"Does that mean it worth more than a regular penny?" Steven asked.

"It makes… cents!" Connie said, grinning.

The two burst into laughter.

Steven's happy smile faded. "This is so fun… but I feel like this is your destiny, not mine. I don't think I'm supposed to be here…"

"I want you here! I mean, I don't want you here." Connie blushed. "I guess Lion wants us here. But I want us to be at the movies! And I want to see lots of explosions too."

Suddenly, the platform lost its glow and Connie glanced down. "That's…. not good."

A robot suddenly came out and they gasped.

"Also not good!" Connie cried.

"Lion seems fine with it…" Steven said.

Suddenly, the robot fired a ball of electricity at them.

"RUN!" Connie screamed. The two scattered in opposite directions.

"Steven!" Connie called, running from the robot.

"Connie! Look out!" Steven cried, avoiding a shot.

Connie gasped as ice was shot at her. She grabbed Steven and formed a bubble around them both. The robot fired and destroyed the shield, leaving the children shaking in a ring of fire.

Connie noticed Lion nearby and called, "Lion, get us out of here! Lion, please help us!"

Lion leapt to them and crouched down. They climbed up and he bounded away, creating a portal and leaping into it.

* * *

Lion landed and Connie looked over to see a shocked ticket woman. "Now you take us to the movies?!"

Lion sat down, causing them both to roll off.

Steven winched as he gingerly touched a burn.

"Oh dear," Connie sighed, taking off her backpack. She took out a apple soda. "Here, Steven… sorry it's not that cold."

Steven pressed it to the burn and smiled weakly. "T-That's alright… thanks, Connie."

"Right. We should go in and-" Connie was interrupted by Steven's cough.

"It's okay… Let's just forget about it…" He sighed.

Connie reached out her hand to Steven. "I'm sorry. I ruined everything, didn't I? I don't know why you hang out with me. I mess stuff up all the time."

Steven laughed sadly. "Connie, I don't know why you hang out with me! I'm so boring compared to you! I'm not a magical boy with a magical destiny…. Why would a hero like you even care about something like Catcopter?"

"Why?!" Connie creid in excitement. "Because it's Catcopter! She's a cat and a helicopter and a cop! She shoots missiles out of her rear end, and she's gonna save the world! Catcopter is very cool and important... to me."

Steven's smile faulted. "I'm no Catcopter…"

Suddenly, a car behind him exploded. They screamed in surprise and Lion snarled at the portal, them seeing the same robot had followed them and was stuck in the portal.

"Lion, what are we to do?!" Connie creid. The lion bent down to his mistress and his head glowed. The hilt of a sword with her mother's symbol appeared. Connie stared in wonder. She and Steven unsheathed the sword. "My mother's  
sword… It's… glorious." Connie uttered while Steven yelled, "IT HAS A SWORD IN IT'S HEAD?!"

Connie still stared, mistified. "Connie! Watch out!" Steven creid. He grabbed the sword's hilt and turned it's thick blade flat so it would shield them. Connie and Steven watched the flames evaporate and looked at each other amazed.  
Steven helped Connie shield herself by spinning the sword around, "hubbing the tires!" He yelled. He swung it swiftly upward, "hosing the car!"

The children yelled together, thrusting out the sword, "SPONGE… DESTRUCTION BOMB!"

The fireball hurtled into the robot, destroying it…

Steven smiled and whispered, "Just like… washing a car."

"Except we're washing the world of evil…" Connie added softly.

They turned to the shocked ticket lady and smiled.

Connie looked happy and innocent. "Hi there!"

"Er, hello." The teenager said. They walked up. "Two kids and one lion to see Catcopter please!"

"Do you… have a rewards card?" 


	18. Beach Party

Connie and Lapis were thrown in the sand.

"Are you alright, Connie?" Peridot gasped.

Connie grunted softly. "I've seen better days!"

"I'm okay too, teammate!" Lapis said, teasing Peridot.

"Oh, I know you can handle yourself!" Peridot growled.

"It's coming!" Jasper yelled, landing beside them. The giant pufferfish came from the ocean and Lapis growled, "It doesn't deserve to be in my element!"

"Distract it!" Jasper yelled, jumping away.

"Right. Let's show this clod what we're made of!" Peridot creid.

"If you insist." Lapis shrugged.

She was about to use her powers when the pufferfish blew Jasper away, into town.

"Ugh, you're gonna get it!" Lapis yelled. She made a fist and punched up. Water from the ocean did the same and hurdled the beast away. Connie saw in the distance it getting chained and pulled under the water.

"Lapis! If you keep it underwater, it'll exhaust you!" Peridot growled.

"Then we'll just have to think of a plan before collapse, won't we?" Lapis then grabbed her head and growled, "It's a fighter, a strong one."

"Come on, let's go get Jasper, she landed by the boardwalk." Connie sighed.

* * *

"What are you even doing up there?!" Kofi Pizza growled.

"I'm waiting for my friends, little man." Jasper shrugged. "Mind if I lay here?" She had crashed into the Pizzas' sign.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I d-"

"Jasper! Are you okay?" Connie yelled.

Jasper hopped down. "I'm doin' great, kiddo."

"Hi Connie." Kiki said, waving.

Connie waved back.

"Whoa… Did Jasper do that?!" Lapis asked, pointing to the sign.

"I have not given back your speaking privileges, Lazuli!" Peri creid. She turned to Jasper, "She's keeping that abomination under the ocean!"

"Come on, let's go." Jasper sighed, looking at Lapis with disappointment.

They jumped away.

"Where are you going? What about my sign?" Kofi yelled. "Connie! What is wrong with your friends? One of them busted up my sign, then they all just jump into the sky like some circus act, without even offering to help!"

Connie rubbed her neck, wishing she could leap away too. "I'm sor-"

The door opened and Jenny walked out. "Dad, pipe down!"

"Ohhh! Did I interrupt your beauty sleep?" Mr. Pizza creid.

"I don't need sleep to look pretty." Jenny smirked.

"Now you listen here, young woman-!" Kofi growled.

Suddenly, Kofi's mother came out holding a dead fish. "Kofi, you are going to wake this fish from the dead with all the noise you're keeping. Oh, too late." She wiggled the fish and pretended to be it. "Kofi, you so loud! Aaaahh!"

Jenny giggled. "Gunga, you're so funny."

"Mom! Quit joking around!" Kofi creid. The grandmother walked up to see the sign. "Cheese on bread." She muttered.

"Can you believe it?" Her son cried. He turned to Connie. "You're such a nice girl, Connie. Why do you hang out with those animals?"

"They're not animals!" Connie snarled. "They're the Crystal Temps, and they protect humanity—"

"I've heard enough!" Kofi growled. Connie fell back.

The grandmother glanced nervously between the man and Connie. "Hey, girls, I think I hear all of our cell phones ringing." She coughed.

"Gunga, your hearing is so good!" Jenny played along. The rest of the family went in.

Kofi turned back to the girl. "Connie, you can tell your friends that they are officially banned from Fish Stew Pizza!"

Connie's face of anger faded to shock. "Wait, what?!" The man started to walk away. "Kofi, that's not fair!" Connie yelled. "This was just an accident!" The door slammed shut. She walked away in despair…

* * *

"I can handle it!" Lapis creid.

"But for how much longer?!" Jasper yelled.

Connie walked in, causing them to go quiet. "I've got bad news, everyone. You've all been banned from Fish Stew Pizza."

Peridot looked up. "Should this… be concerning?"

"That pizza's pretty disgusting." Lapis shrugged.

"Aren't you guys upset?!" Connie cried.

"Nope." Jasper said bluntly.

"But these are our neighbors!" Connie protested.

"There's nothing we can do about that now." Jasper said.

"I completely agree! Right now we have to figure out a way to take care of that pufferfish before it strains Lapis."

"What's the point of saving people if they're just gonna ban you from their pizza shops?" Connie growled.

"We don't do it for thanks." Jasper shrugged.

"Yeah!" Connie nodded. "That's so nice of you, the Pizzas don't even know! If they got to spend some time with you they'd see how cool," Connie looked at Lapis. "and smart," She looked and Peridot. "and strong  
you are!" Jasper smirked. "I am pretty strong…"

Connie thought for a few seconds then gasped. "I got it! I'll throw a little party on the beach in front of the temple! Just us and the Pizzas!"

"But Connie-" Lapis said.

"I've got it handled!"

* * *

Connie was grilling hot dogs and burgers. She smelled them and nodded in approval.

"Hey, Connie!"

She turned to see Lapis and the others.

"Do you have everything ready for your social gathering?" Peridot asked.

"I do! Oh, there's one more thing." Connie gave them a magazine.

"What's this for?" Lapis frowned.

"I was thinking you could change your outfits." Connie shrugged.

"I look magnificent! Why would I ever want to change my clothing?" Peridot asked.

"I thought we could look a little casual today!" Connie replied.

"Is this the right address?"

Connie turned and saw the Pizzas walking close.

"Oh man, they're here! Hurry up and change." Connie said, running to the family. "Over here everyone!"

"How are you all doing today?" Connie blushed.

"The shop is closed today, because it's broken!" Kofi growled. His family looked nervous.

"Oh, uh, that sounds, uh…" Connie sweated, she had no idea what to say!

"Hey! Do I smell hot dogs? Show me where the hot dogs are." The old woman creid.,

Connie gave a sigh of relief. "Right this way, everyone." She lead them to the gems. "First, let me introduce—"

"We are the Crystal Temps! Jasper!" Jasper said. Her nose glowed and her hair folded in a ponytail, she was in orange shorts and a white tank top.

"Lapis!" Lapis's back glowed and hair twisted to into a messy bun. Her dress turned into capri pants and a shirt with had cut sleeves that touched her shoulders.

"Peridot!" Peridot's head glowed and she had green alien shorts on with a yellow t-shirt.

"And Connie!" Connie popped up and then laughed nervously. "That was… You already know me…"

"You are all so talented!" The grandmother laughed, not seeming fazed.

"So, you are a circus act." Kofi growled.

"Rude!" Lapis muttered. Connie coughed over her loudly. "Let's eat!"

* * *

Lapis gently ate a hotdog, wincing slightly as she knew the monster was pulling… Just waiting for the moment she gave up… She hoped no one else would ever have to feel the strain of keeping a monster at bay…

"Everything turned out great!" Kiki creid, jolting Lapis to reality.

"Thank you, Kiki." Connie laughed.

"Aren't you girls hungry?" Gunga sighed to the gems. "You've barely touched your food."

Jasper gave a chuckle. "We don't need food."

"Oh, you young people and your experimental diets." The woman laughed.

"I am much older than you." Jasper grunted.

"So, you all live in that tiny house up on that hill?" Kofi asked, pointing at Connie's home.

"Well, Connie lives there… We inhabit the inner sanctums, only accessible through magical extra dimensional doors." Jasper said, her nose sparkling as her gem glowed.

"What is wrong with your hand?" Mr. Pizza whispered.

"And why does this place look like it's falling apart?" Jenny asked, looking at the fusion statue on the house.

"Well, the temple has been here for centuries—" Peridot said.

"Oh! I see how it is, when something breaks around here, you just leave it alone. JUST LIKE THE SIGN AT MY SHOP!" Kofi yelled.

"Um... who wants to play volleyball?" Connie laughed.

* * *

Connie drew a line in the sand. She stood. "Okay, everyone, the court is all set. Now to get into our teams."

"But we are far more superior to these humans." Peridot said. Kofi glared at her.

"That's why I'm picking the teams." Connie smirked. "Lapis and Jenny! Peridot and Kiki! Jasper and Kofi! And last, but not least, yours truly and Nanefua!"

"I haven't played in ages but I bet I could whoop all your butts." Nanefua said.

"That's the spirit!" Connie laughed. "You guys ready? Let's play!"

Lapis grunted, but forced a weak smirk. "Ready to lose, Peri?"

"Oh, I'm not losing to a clod like you!" Peridot chuckled.

"Here we come!" Lapis laughed. She threw the ball up and hit it.

Peridot smirked and Kiki hit it.

Lapis made her wings and tried to hit it but missed.

"Lapis! No flying!" Connie yelled.

"W-what?" Lapis asked, her head aching.

"For a human, you have a good skill set." Peridot smiled at Kiki. The girl laughed.

"Lapis! Are you oka-" Connie was interrupted by Lapis grunting, "I'm fine!"

"Try harder Jenny!" Nanefua yelled.

"Here it comes!" Kiki yelled, slapping the ball.

Jenny saw Lapis nearly falling over… She wondered why the woman was so out of it but saw the ball and proceeded to shake the net. "What? I'm not doing anything." She smirked.

"My turn?" Lapis grunted. She shapeshifted into a tennis racket and sent the ball back.

"Lapis, if you weren't straining yourself, maybe you could play this right!" Peridot yelled, still mad at her.

The twins tried to ease the tension.

"Afraid to get sand in your hair, Kiki?" Jenny laughed. Lapis cracked a weak smile.

"Nope. I might like to stay tidy, but I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty." Kiki said. Peridot smirked and gave her a fist bump. "Me too!"

"Our turn." Kofi said. He and Jasper were against Jenny and Lapis. "I'm ready." Jasper said, cracking her knuckles.

Jenny ran to get the ball then Kofi yelled, "Jennifer! You touch that ball, you're grounded!"

Jenny missed the ball in shock. "Whoa! Daddy, you cheatin'!"

Kofi laughed. "The look on your face! Hahaha!"

"This is going to be easy." Jasper smirked.

"It'd be nice if they stuck to the basics." The old woman said next to Connie. She nodded softly.

Lapis hit the ball up high, really high. Jasper leapt up and slammed the ball down. It started to catch fire as it came back. "We should probably move, huh?" Jenny whispered. Lapis was using all her might to keep the monster under, not  
hearing her. "Move!" Jenny yelled, shoving Lapis and herself out of the ball's path. They then saw a giant chunk of glass was there.

"Did you know that when sand is superheated it turns into glass?" The gunga asked.

Connie smiled. "I didn't know that."

Lapis still seemed to concentrate on keeping the monster down, but her love for Connie's happiness, as well as her competitive spirit kept her going. She threw the chunk of glass away with her amazing strenth. "L-let's play!"

Lapis created water doubles of herself that hit the ball back for her while she watched with a tiny smile.

"Kofi time!" Kofi yelled, hitting the ball.

"Jenny time!" Jenny cried.

"You can't use the car for a month!" Kofi yelled, making her miss. "Daaddy!"

"Stop cheating!" Lapis growled. Her sudden emotion sent her head spinning.

"You cheated first, Lapis." Jasper snarled.

Suddenly, Peridot shoved Lapis aside saying to Jasper, "I may not know how to play this game well, but I thoroughly analyzed the rules! You broke all of them!"

Lapis gasped in shock, clasping her hands to her mouth, but no one noticed. Connie went to get the ball but saw her hair flipping side to side and then a massive gust of wind hit her. She saw the monster from before come around the corner. "Guys!  
The pufferfish is back!" She screeched.

The girl ran to the grandmother and pulled her away.

The others were still fighting while Lapis was still in shock at what she had let loose on the sand.

"JASPER!" Connie yelled, getting everyone's attention.

She pointed to the monster and Jasper gasped. She turned to Lapis who whispered, "I couldn't keep it under… like before…"

Jasper grabbed her wrist and yelled, "Protect the Pizzas!"

They grabbed the family and leapt away to cover, watching the destruction from afar.

"I'm not afraid of that thing! Let's see if you can keep up with me!" Nanefua said, running to the monster.

"Wait! Stop!" Connie creid, racing after her.

Then she saw the grandmother running around the thing, distracting it! Connie joined in.

"Connie! I demand you stop!" Peridot yelled.

"What are they doing?!" Kiki gasped.

"Everybody, get ready!" Connie yelled.

"Mom, are you crazy?!" Kofi creid.

"She is… but she's also brave to be…" Jasper muttered.

"Lapis, I know you're scared and upset right now but I need you to shapeshift into a ball!" Connie yelled.

"If it helps you win, I will!" Lapis creid. She did so.

"Jenny! Roll Lapis to the net and hold on!" The gunga yelled.

"Sure thing!" Jenny called.

"Peridot! Head over to Jenny and Lapis!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Peridot yelled. She leapt to them.

"Hit Lapis into the air as hard as you can!" Nanefua creid.

Peridot turned to Lapis. "Are you going to be okay? I know you've been through a lot…"

"You know I can take care of myself." Lapis smirked.

Peridot nodded and hit her high into the air.

"Kofi! Kiki! Get over to the net!" Nanefua called.

"Jasper, spike the beach!" Connie creid.

"You got it, kid!" Jasper grunted. She leapt into the air and grabbed Lapis the ball.

"Give it all you got! I need my revenge." Lapis smiled.

"That's the spirit!" Jasper laughed. She hit Lapis with her helmet and the woman gradually set aflame. She hit the beach and made glass.

"Here comes the tricky part!" Nanefua said.

"I'm ready." Connie grunted.

"Everyone take the net to the other side of the court!" They did and Connie yelled, "Okay, everyone, pull the net into its face!" They did that too but it didn't work!

"It's not enough!" The gunga creid.

"Don't worry, here comes Jasper!" Connie assured her.

Jasper head butted the monster into the glass.

* * *

"Thanks for your hospitality."

Nanefua lightly punched her son's stomach. "And?"

Kofi sighed. "And, for saving my family, you are all officially un-banned from my shop."

"Thank you so much, Kofi! We really appreciate it, right, guys?" Connie asked.

"Sure?" Jasper whispered

"Aaaand?" Connie laughed.

"What were we banned from again?" Peridot whispered. Connie covered her mouth and laughed nervously.

* * *

 **Why is this so much different then the original one with Lapis here? If you think about it, Lapis wouldn't just leave that thing to the ocean, that's why she strained to keep it under, also, I'm sure you're all seeing the hints and foreshadowing ofMalachite since... what, Arcade Mania? Well that episode is coming up soon!**


	19. Yellows Room

"You can do this, Connie!" Connie whispered to herself. She ate a spoonful of carrots and nearly choked crying out, "I did it! I ate four cans of mashed up carrots!"

The door suddenly glowed and she turned to see the Crystal Temps. "Hello, Connie." Peridot said.

"Guys! Look!" Connie cried. She ran to them with the empty cans.

"What have you got there?" Lapis smiled.

"I've got four empty cans of mashed carrots!" Connie said proudly.

"Sweet." Jasper said.

"Yeah, and on the back are five dollar coupons for the tennis court. I ate four cans, so we all can go together!" Connie explained, showing off the back.

"You're very kind, Connie. However, uhh…" Peridot glanced at Lapis.

"We've… got to go on another mission." Lapis murmured.

"What? Not again!" Connie cried, dropping the cans. "You guys promised we'd hang out!"

"This is a very important mission, kiddo… I'm sorry, but we can't stay." Jasper said.

"B-but, it's like swinging a sword, and you hit stuff, and I like it…" Connie said. Her eyes lit up. "Look! I pulled out my dad's old rackets and also found a pair of his old tennis shorts. They're a little big on me, but you  
can wear them, Jasper!"

The other gems chuckled while Jasper frowned.

"Bye, Connie!" Lapis said, waving.

Connie watched them disappear on the warp pad.

"Well, you're not the only ones with a dangerous adventure to tackle." She whispered.

The girl ran to her room and turned on her tv to a game, 'Tennis Quest'

"Hooray! You received the Mythril racket!" Connie said, she made the game's sound effect. "Don't worry, professor! We're gonna whack 'em all!" Connie giggled, saying the main protagonist's line. "Uh-oh."  
The girl said, seeing a giant tennis ball approach. "Oh tennis ball. Why must we always fight? Man, it would've been just like this!"

She played all night and finally beat the boss. She watched it explode.

'Unlocked secret ending' the screen said.

"Secret ending!" Connie squealed.

"Connie! We're home!" She heard Lapis yell.

Connie's eyes were glued to the screen.

"Project S.I.N.N.T? That's tennis spelled backwards!" The main character gasped. Suddenly, a capsule started opening. "What is this?!" The girl asked.

"Connie! Do you want to hear about where we've been?!" Lapis laughed, bending down in front of her. Connie gasped and bent down to look at the screen.

"June 9, 2014? But that was the date she disappeared!" The character gasped.

"Since when have you liked video games?" Lapis asked, falling in front of the girl.

"Hey!" Connie cried in frustration.

"Check it out!" Jasper said proudly, slamming a heavy object on the floor. Connie desperately tried to see the screen.

"It's a rock!" Peridot squealed. "Well, a very special rock, anyway! It's called the Wailing Stone!"

"That's great, but I kinda need you to mov-" Connie was interrupted by Lapis flying to it, "It makes a loud noise when you press this!" She pressed a button on the top of the stone.

The stone made humongous sounds and destroyed the tv then Peridot slammed her fist down on the button. "Lapis, don't touch that!"

"THAT WAS THE SECRET ENDING!" Connie yelled, making them jump. "Now I have to replay the final dungeon all over again! It's not fair! I can't play tennis, I can't play my game, I can't stop going into the bathroom because I  
ate all those mashed carrots, so many carrots...I just wish I had a place for myself."

Her gem started to glow. She glanced down at it while Jasper saw the door glow, "Kid, come here." She breathed.

They ran to the door and saw the yellow diamond that matched the one on Connie's chest glowing.

"It unlocked your mother's room!" Peridot gasped.

Connie stepped closer but the gems creid out warnings.

"Stop!" Peridot yelled.

"Don't go in there!" Lapis creid.

"It's too dangerous!" Jasper called.

"It's never about what I wanna do, is it?" Connie flipped to them, her hair almost smacking Peridot. "Well now we have a place where I'm going and YOU CAN'T COME!"

"CONNIE!" The gems yelled.

She went in

* * *

The girl looked around and saw the room was yellow, and full of clouds. "So this is my mom's room? She must've liked clouds a lot... But what kind of room doesn't even have a bed?" No sooner did she say that then and bed did appear underneath  
her. "Cool! Hm...This bed is pretty nice. But you know what would be really nice? Quadruple bunk-beds!" It did as she wished. "With a slide!" She laughed as she slid down and flew through the air. "Parachute please!"  
She gently fell to the ground.

"What next? Hmmmm... Ummmm... A tiny floating whale?" The yellow whale appeared beside her. She giggled. "Hey cutie!" She petted it. "Here… I can have anything I want! But you know what I really want? I wanna see  
the end of my game, without being interrupted!" She saw the tv pop up next to her and high-fived the whale. "It's me, your mother! After decades of cryostation, I'm finally free!" The main character's mother cried. The two hugged. Connie  
smiled with satisfaction. "Awesome!" She then yawned. "Hm.. I wish I had a book to read." The room made a book. She attempted to open it but it poofed into clouds. "What? I want a real book…" She said. She tried to read  
the new one that appeared but it disappeared as well! "Now I have to go out for books!" Connie groaned. A door appeared. She exited.

* * *

"Don't get excited, guys. I'm only back for a second." Connie saw the whole place was dark, and no one was there. "Huh."

* * *

She walked to the bookstore and browsed them.

"What can we help you with, Connie?" The girl jumped and turned to see Lars and Sadie smiling down at her. "O-oh! It's just you! Er, I'm looking for some poetry… to read with my dad later, you see we haven't read-"

"It's very nice to see you, Connie!" The two said.

"Oh, um, it's very nice to see you, too, I suppose." They handed Connie a bag full of books. "Here are your books!"

"But I only wanted-"

"Okay, we love you, Connie! Bye bye, now!" She watched them almost robotically go behind the desk. "I haven't payed for these!" She ran to them out the back door but only saw Onion.

"Oh, hi Onion…" Connie whispered. "Have you seen Lars and Sadie? They should have just been out here… Hey, if you see them, let me know. Okay?" The boy stared. "Do you… know how to read yet? Here, look, this book  
has pictures you can look at…" Connie bent down to show him a book without opening it and he blinked. "Here… you can borrow it." She placed one beside him and ran off.

She was at the boardwalk and all was quiet, yet all had lights on. "This… is weird…" She walked by the fry shop and felt a familiar sense of horror… Connie turned to see Frybo. The girl fell back in shock. "Peedee?..." The monster  
suddenly put a plate of fry bits in front of her. "Oh, fry bits. Usually I'm all about the bits. But I'm feeling kinda spooked right now." The girl backed away slowly but the thing put more fry bits out. "Ghaa! Er, I have to go!"

Connie walked into Funland, deserted too. She came up to the arcade and suddenly, all the lights and games turned on. She screamed and fell back, running away.

She then saw she was at the beach. Then, on a hill, she saw Steven with his back to her, a pink glow around him. She smiled gratefully. Steven would know what to do! "Steven! I can't believe it's you. When did you get back in town?"  
She then glanced down at the water. It kept moving forward and back. "The water! Steven, what's going on?! Where is everyone?!" The boy suddenly turned around. She couldn't see his eyes in the glow of the bracelet. "She was AWESOME!"  
He yelled, making Connie fall away.

"WHAT?!" She cried.

The boy kept repeating when she turned to see the other residents behind her, doing nothing…

"What's wrong with your faces? Lion, you too?!" She gasped seeing her pet.

The girl was suddenly walking in water. "Can someone please explain THIS?!" She started to sink and found herself at the police station. Her father walked through the door. "Connie!" He smiled.

Connie frowned and cocked her head. "Dad? Is that you?"

"What? Of course! You doing alright? You look like you saw a ghost. Either that, or you stayed up all night playing a videogame." He winked at her.

"Dad, I'm really scared! I feel like I'm stuck inside of some crazy dream." The girl whispered.

"Whoa. Why don't we share some of those books and you can tell me about this crazy night you're having?" They sat on the police car.

"The Temps were trying to tell me something about Mom's room. But I was so mad that I didn't listen. They're always leaving me behind, and... I guess I wanted to do it to them, too." Connie sighed.

"Aw, that's not so bad." Doug shrugged. "Everyone needs some alone time now and then." He played air guitar.

"Yeah. It was really fun for a while. But now," Connie bit her lip, "the whole city; everyone and everything... is acting really weird…"

"Well the important thing is you told the truth." Doug smiled.

"Yeah, I... guess I did." Connie frowned. He suddenly played air guitar again. "Uh, Dad? Your advice is making less sense than usual."

Doug turned to her. "Well the important thing is family and friendship, honesty values, and no one got arrested, heh, I would know." He played air guitar.

The girl frowned then glanced at the book in her lap. She hesitated, then tried to open it… it poofed into clouds. "I'm… still in the room!" She gasped. "This is all fake!"

The room started to crack around her. She was in a star filled sky and watched it, all of the horror, leave…

She started to fall and creid out, "I DON'T WANT THIS!" Suddenly, the yellow whale appeared in front of her. "What do you want, Connie?" It said in a calm voice that made Connie feel as if she had heard it many, many times  
before…

" I want to be back with the Crystal Temps!" She sobbed, hugging the whale as if it was a child would hug its mother when it was scared.

* * *

Connie slammed right into Jasper and bit her arm.

"Hey! Watch it, kid!" Jasper grunted.

"You're not clouds!" Connie laughed in relief, happy tears slipping down her face.

"Connie? Sweetheart, what's wrong?" Lapis gasped, hugging her.

"It was awful… I was trapped in a messed up version of Beach City. Everyone was acting super weird and…" Lapis looked at Connie. "The room made a whole town?!"

"THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" Peridot creid.

"At least you're safe…" Jasper sighed.,

"I'm sorry I got mad, guys. I get it now. Things can't always go exactly how I want." Connie whispered.

"Connie, we're sorry, too." Peridot said. Lapis nodded.

"But guess what? We have time to hang out, now." Jasper smiled.

* * *

Connie was now playing tennis with the gems. "I always get what I want!" 


	20. Coach Connie

The Crystal Temps warped to the Gem Communication Hub.

"Wow! It's beautiful!" Connie cried.

Lapis smiled. "It is. It's-" Peridot suddenly interrupted her.

"It actually was once a communication hub for Gem-kind. But lately," Peridot walked to a pillar. "It's begun transmitting bursts of electromagnetic interference."

"... That's not good?" Connie assumed.

"To make this understandable, it's hurting television." Jasper smirked.

"Oh, Steven would hate that!" Connie gasped.

Lapis nodded. "Well, we have work to do!" She sighed. The water rose from her gem, making a fist when Peridot coughed. "Lazuli, we could be here all day taking out these pillars individually."

The water dropped and Lapis frowned. "I… guess you're right…" She glanced at Peridot who smiled smugly. "Ugh, why do you have to do that every time?!"

"We need a quick and simple plan,-" Peridot's calculations were interrupted by Jasper butting in. "Peridot, there is short time… We don't have enough to make a plan before the humans notice… We need Malachite. Lapis, fuse with  
me."

"No... no, no, no!" Lapis creid. "You know… she'll… and I… I can't keep her under for long!" The woman whispered.

"Wait! Are... you guys going to become a Gem Fusion?" Connie gasped.

Lapis shook her head firmly. "No. We aren't!" She glanced at Jasper. "W-We won't!"

Connie squealed in excitement while Lapis started to back away from Jasper. "I won't do it!"

"Lapis-" Jasper started.

"NO! Never!" Lapis sobbed. Connie stopped and Peridot spoke up, "Jasper, reconsider this! Lapis doesn't want to, you know what happens… Fuse with me instead!" Peridot pleaded.

"No. Lapis, it's been too long!" Jasper growled. For once, Connie felt really scared of Jasper.

"I… This isn't for Earth, this is for you!" Lapis snarled. "You're obsessed with her!"

"What? No! It's not like that!" Jasper creid. "This… Ugh! If this tower doesn't come down soon, they'll find out, they'll find us!"

Lapis's eyes widened in shock. "There must be another way-"

"But there isn't!" Jasper yelled. "They'll find… Connie if we don't do this…"

Connie felt like a rock hit her. "W-Who will find me, Lapis?"

Lapis glanced at Jasper's open hand then at Connie. "Y-You're never going to find out…" The woman gently placed her hand into Jasper's.

"Thank you." Jasper sighed. Peridot looked mortified as they started to dance. She grabbed Connie. Lapis twirled in Jasper's arms then she was dipped. Both gems glowed and the women looked back at Peridot and Connie, then, they  
whispered together, "Run."

The two disappeared as a new fusion was made… Connie looked up at Malachite.

"Oh," The fusion chuckled. "I forgot how GREAT it feels to be me!"

Peridot shook her head in disbelief while Connie stared. "That's Malachite?!"

"You got it, sweetheart!" The fusion smirked. "Connie, dear, do you want to see something cool?"

"Well.. Yes…" Connie whispered. She hoped Lapis was okay being… this.

The fusion made Jasper's helmet and Lapis's wings.

Connie gasped.

"You like that, little girl?"

"You're going to smash stuff?" Connie asked.

"That's the plan, kiddo. Where do I start?"

Connie pointed to a pillar and watched Malachite slam her helmet into it, destroying it.

"Connie, I think we should go." Peridot whispered.

"But-!" Connie protested. A rock suddenly hit her in the head. She cried out in pain.

"Connie!" Peridot turned to Malachite. "Ugh, you're just too much!"

The fusion turned to her. "Maybe you're just too WEAK!"

Peridot grabbed Connie's wrist. "Connie, we're going, NOW!"

"I'm okay! Malachite is Lapis and Jasper, she won't hurt me, she loves me!" Connie creid. The sad glance from Peridot made her refrase, "Lapis and Jasper… love me. Peridot, we can't leave them!"

"They would want you to be safe!"

They warped away just as a rock smashed the warp pad.

* * *

Connie entered the bookshop with a big amount of gauze around her head. "Hi, guys…" She sighed, seeing Lars and Sadie stare at her.

"Connie, what happened to you?" Lars gasped.

"Oh… I have a battle scar, as Peridot likes to call it." Connie smiled.

"From what?" Sadie asked.

"From a rock." Connie lifted up the thing to reveal a tiny cut.

They both burst into laughter.

"It must not have been a big rock!" Lars laughed.

"Peri wrapped it, not me." Connie said.

"If I weren't so modest, I'd show you how strong a girl can be!" Sadie looked over to see Lars struggling to open a can. She grabbed it and opened it easily, "Like that."

"Thanks." Lars smiled.

"Uh-huh."

"That's it!" Connie cried. "We all need a workout! Let's do it! Let's workout together!" She turned to Sadie. "You can hug Lars even harder," She turned to Lars. "and you don't have to starve to death if Sadie  
divorces you!"

Sadie gave a groan, "We're not married!"

"And I know just the guy to help us out." Connie smiled.

* * *

"Wow, this looks great!" Connie creid. Her father awoke from a nap. "Oh! Hey, Connie. You like it? It's the best I can do on such short notice."

Sadie saw some of it break off. "No kidding."

"Well I might join you kids show you how it's done! I've been slacking off on my workout routine for few weeks... months... years...decades." Doug coughed, making the kids stare.

"Sure! The more the better! Oh! We'll need sweatbands!" She ran to the house.

Peridot walked up to the gym.

"Hey Peri. Come to check out some buff studs?" Doug asked.

Peridot looked at him up and down. "Negative." She walked up to the house. "Connie, may I ask why there is piles of cardboard and metal on the beach?"

"Oh! We've made a gym! I want to be as strong as Malachite… Maybe then I can get Lapis and Jasper back…" Connie whispered.

Peridot smiled sadly. "Connie… Power shouldn't be your only goal in life."

"I… never said it was…" Connie blushed. "I want to be strong… in the real way. Want to join?"

"No thanks." Peridot said.

Connie watched her close the door.

Peridot sighed and leaned against the door. "Connie… _I wish you could to look up to her_

 _Aside from in a literal sense…_ " Peridot picked up Connie's laundry from the floor and shuttered in memory of Malachite, when she was first made… when Lapis and Jasper discovered what they had done… and Lapis had tried her best to keep the  
monster underneath the water, to protect Peridot and Yellow Diamond… but she had failed. " _At least you know that a power that big… Comes with a bigger expense. Oh, you see that she's out of control And overzealous… I'm reminding you for your own good, And not because I'm-_ "  
Peridot blushed in anger and pulled down the blinds. She didn't see Connie crouched, listening. " _I can show you how to be strong… In the real I know that we can be strong In the real way._

 _And I want to inspire you I want to be your rock_

 _And when I talk, It lights a fire in you._ "

"Come on, let's do this!" Connie turned on a radio, singing to her friends, " _I can show you how to be strong… In the real I know that we can be strong, In the real way._ "

Peridot and Connie unknowingly sang together, " _And I want to inspire you I want to be your rock_

 _And when I talk, It lights a fire in you. I want to inspire you, I want to be your rock, And when I talk… It lights a fire in you…_ " Connie finished and stood on Sadie's back.

"Um, Connie? Maybe you can work out too?" Lars asked after they fell over, and all were sweating.

"What? I have been." Connie said.

"You've been… singing the whole time." Sadie groaned.

"But you're doing a great job pumping us up!" Doug smiled.

"Thanks!" Connie blushed. "But I need to get strong, too. I'm switching to four-wheel drive!" She put on four tires and started to run.

* * *

"Connie, come on! We're ready to get started! We can't work out without your mad coaching skills!" Lars yelled early the next morning.

Connie groaned in pain. "I'm coming!" She rolled out of bed and walked down. "So sore from getting ripped…"

She saw Peridot looking worried at the Warp Pad. "I don't understand... Lapis and Jasper still aren't back yet. I tried to warp back and check on them, but the Warp Pad's down!"

The two suddenly heard a rumbling.

"Oh my gosh, the water!" They heard Sadie cry.

"Are you seeing this?!" Lars gasped.

The house started to crumble and the two gems ran out. They saw the water part in massive waves and Malachite walk between them.

"Where is she?!" The fusion snarled.

"Oh no!" Connie gasped. "It's her!"

Peridot ran down. "You're okay!" She smiled.

"You!" Malachite roared. "You left me behind, you brat!"

"I-We thought you could handle it on your own!" Peridot yelled. "Now separate, and give me back my friends!"

"Never!" Malachite yelled, kicking Peridot.

"Lapis, Jasper, she's taking control of you!" Peridot snarled.

"YOUR PRECIOUS FRIENDS ARE GONE! THEY'RE ALREADY MINE, AND NO WEAK WATER CHAINS WILL STOP ME NOW!" Malachite laughed.

"Stop! Stop attacking her!" Connie screamed, running to Peridot.

"Shut up, you little brat!" The fusion said. Peridot shoved Connie away. "Run!" Peridot hissed.

"No! I-" Malachite smacked the girl into her father and they went toppling back.

Peridot made a metal dumbbell from the gym fly to her then her metal pole. She wrapped the pole around the dumbbell and made a war hammer.

"What, YOU WANT TO FIGHT ME?!" Malachite bellowed.

"You'll thank me later, now stop being clods and wake up!" Peridot yelled, jumping up. She hit Malachite.

Doug attempted to pull Connie away but Connie gave a cry, "No! Peridot!"

"YOU THINK YOU CAN SAVE THEM?! YOU," The monster laughed. Peridot fell but Malachite hit her to the sky. "ARE," She flew up and slammed her down to the ground, "PATHETIC!" The giant being attempted to smash Peridot  
but her hammer protected her. The impact still sent Doug and Connie flying…

"Connie!" Peridot screeched. She looked up at the giant helmet she could barely keep at bay… "I'm so sorry…" She sniffed. "Connie… Jasper… Lapis… I'm worthless! I can't save you… I'm not strong enough to do anything  
on my own!"

Connie saw the megaphone she had sang in and picked it up, "You can do this, Peri!"

"I can't!" Peridot choked.

"Yes, you can!" Connie screamed through tears. "Come on! You always knew what to do! You gotta show her what you showed me! That you're strong, Peri! Strong in the REAL WAY!"

Peridot shoved her hammer up, pushing the fusion away. She glanced at the temple.

"YOU WANT MORE?!" Malachite laughed.

"Give it all you got, CLOD!" Peridot yelled. "You're no match for me!"

She ran to the lighthouse, Connie cheering her on. Malachite attempted to grab her. "Come back here!"

Peridot was stopped when water from the ocean grabbed her in waist, holding her above the fusion.

"NO!" Connie cried.

"See?! You can't bring your friends back!" Malachite laughed at Peridot. "Now drop your weapon and surrender!"

Peridot gasped in surprise at something. "Okay… I'll drop my weapon…" She then smirked, "But the Great and honorable Peridot never surrenders!" She dropped her hammer and all the metal from the gym smashed into it, making it  
massive. It slammed Malachite on the head.

With a poof, she was gone, in her place, Lapis and Jasper were lying there, fast asleep with all the energy they had exerted. Peridot squealed then landed on Jasper's stomach after the water released her. Jasper awoke with an jolt as the  
air knocked out of her. "Ow! Ugh, Peridot!" She growled. The small gem gave a squee and hugged her. Lapis made a small noise then awoke. "W-We're free?!" She gasped. Connie tackled her in a hug. "You sure are!"

Lapis had tears in her eyes and hugged Peridot. "Thank you… You know… you only had to save Connie… not us…"

"Please, of course I did! Malachite is was such a clod, or should I say two clods?!" The gem burst out laughing. Jasper and Lapis glanced at each other.

Lapis smirked. "Just let her have this… She deserves it…"

* * *

 **Oh, I** _ **loved**_ **making this one!**


	21. Joking Victim

Connie sat down when Lapis ran up to her. "Connie! I got you some fries!"

"Really?! Thanks!" Connie gasped. She took a fry and ate it. Suddenly, her mouth caught on fire! Lapis frowned. She glanced at her pocket and took a vial out. "Fire salt?...Ugh, why does Peridot have to put her magic stuff  
of the kitchen counter?!"

Connie ran before Lapis could get some water to cool her down. "I'M SORRY!" Lapis yelled.

* * *

Connie ran into the bookstore and rolled on the carpet, wrinkling it and knocking some books off the shelves. She felt people staring at her. She turned to see Sadie and Lars staring at her. "Sorry guys!"

Sadie rolled her eyes, she walked up, slipped, then got back up. "Who do you think has to clean up this mess?" She turned to Lars. "Lars, clean up this mess."

"Oh no, Steven messes up the Big Dougnut, I take care of it. But if Connie messes up the bookstore, it's all you." Lars said.

"Please?" Sadie begged, batting her eyelashes. "I kinda messed up my back on that fall!"

Lars rolled his eyes and grabbed some books. "Sadie, can you smooth out the carpet?"

The teenager groaned in fake agony. "Ugh, it hurts so much!"

"Maybe… you should take the day off?" Lars whispered.

The girl snapped up like clockwork. "Okay!" She then paused. "Are you… going to be all right on your own?"

"I guess-" Lars started.

Sadie started to walk away. "You're the best, Scaredy Cat!"

Lars smiled softly and the door closed. He then realized what he had done. "Wait, I can't run this place on my own!"

"I can help!" Connie said, nearly tripping on a pile of books.

Lars put a shirt on Connie. "I hereby deputize you as Sadie-for-the-day. Now, it's time I showed you the Employee Room."

They walked to the room.

"Let me give you the tour." Lars said. He gestured to the boxes to the right. "These are the extra supplies. Mops, brooms, soap. Sometimes I sleep on the extra books when I get tired."

The girl grinned.

Lars then gestured to a tv. "On breaks, we chill out here. We can even watch TV. Sometimes, Sadie will cover for me so I can watch Kitten Court." Connie made a sealed lips motion. "Now, most important of all, this is where we store,  
the other books. They're bound somewhere else" They turned to boxes of books.

"You mean you don't bind them here?" Connie asked.

"No, not since... the accident." Lars turned to a black ink splatter on a wall. Connie saw it resembled a human body…

" Now Connie, this job is a big responsibility, so you're gonna have to watch this video." Lars said, showing her a VCR tape.

"What is it?" Connie whispered.

"It's like a DVD shaped like a box, and it'll tell you everything you need to know." Lars put it in.

Connie saw Mr. Frowny was the star.

"... Mr. Frowny used to work here?"

"No, but he used to be an actor/R&B singer… it was an interesting career for him."

The video started.

" _Books…_ " Mr. Frowny's voice sighed. " _At the Bookstore...They make the world go 'round,_ " Someone offered a younger Mr. Frowny a book and he turned with no expression. " _A treat when you are down. Books…_ "  
There was a sudden bored, " _pow.._ "

" _At the Bookstore._ " Then there was a, " _bam…_ "

" _Read them with coffee or tea. Bookmarks are always free.. Now if a customer chokes suddenly…_ " There was a, " _I… don't even know how they could.._ "

" _State law requires that you assist them. Take both hands.. Push below the diaphragm...Get them happy and breathing, as fast as you can._ "

* * *

" _In the event of a fire, don't panic, stay calm._

 _There is a fire extinguisher, Against the back wall._ "

" _... in coffee or tea. Bookmarks are always free._ "

Connie gave a whoop. "That was incredible! Are all video tapes that informative?"

"In my experience, yeah!" Lars smiled.

* * *

"It started out as just a summer job, but... that was two summers ago." Lars explained.

Mr. Frowny walked up. "Do you have any-"

Connie gasped, then started to sing, " _Books! At the Bookstore!_ " Mr. Frowny didn't sing along though. "That was the pit of my career…"

"Oh… Well I can't believe you used to be a real actor/R&B singer!"

"Used to be?" Mr. Frowny sighed. "Kids these days, they don't know anything…" He left.

"Wow, I'm impressed, last time someone mentioned that song we couldn't get Mr. Frowny to go home." Lars smiled.

"To perk up, you gotta percolate, a comic book, makes the perfect day." Connie sang, giving him a book.

"Thanks." Lars chuckled. "Maybe I should phone up Sadie to tell her she can stay home, 'cause I found her replacement."

"Really?!" Connie squealed.

"Oh, no. That was a joke." Lars said.

"I know we both love Sadie…"Connie said. "But… this job is the best thing to ever happen to me and we should fire Sadie."

"We can't "fire Sadie"."

Connie frowned. "Ugh. Why not?"

Lars blushed. "Well, you know, she may do things like come in late, and leave all the really hard work for me but... Look, I like Sadie, she— she's a nice gal.. once you get to know her. There was this one time when the new "Nightmares Beyond  
Dreams" movie was coming out, but Sadie was banned from the only place selling it." Lars smiled wistfully. "She wanted it SO bad. So who does he beg to stand in line for SEVEN hours? Me. I didn't think much of it, but when I got to her house  
I saw she had messed up her room a little, to make me more comfortable, and she had made a big Ube cake. It's my favorite… She doesn't have a talent to bake like I do, but I liked the gesture. She called me Scaredy Cat for squealing at the jump scares,  
and we spent the whole night together."

"That really is nice... must've been one great movie." Connie whispered.

Lars snapped back to reality. "Yeah, it was…"

"Maybe we could do something nice for Sadie?" Connie asked.

The two were walking to Sadie's house

* * *

with a book in Lars's hand. It was of the horror genre.

" _Books, b-b-books_!" Connie sang.

"I thought you wanted this to be a surprise." Lars smirked.

"What can I say? I love to sing!" They then saw the pizza delivery car. "Oh, she ordered pizza?" Connie asked.

They suddenly heard a familiar laugh and snuck to the side of the house to see Sadie jumping on a trampoline with teenagers Connie recognized as Buck Dewey, Sour Cream, and Jenny Pizza.

Sadie suddenly knocked into Buck and he caught her. "Thanks for inviting us, Sadie. This is real cool."

"Yeah." Sadie laughed. "I got the whole day off, by faking a severe back injury!"

Connie gasped. "She was faking the whole ti-!"

She heard a thud and turned to see Lars' face red with frustration and embarrassment, the book now in the mud.

"Lars! Wait!" Connie yelled. She grabbed Lars in the street before he could run away. "I-It'll be okay! We can handle the Bookstore. Who needs crummy old Sadie?

Lars made to slap Connie in his distressed state but the girl's flinch made him stop. "Connie, she's made a fool of me! Ugh, why do I trust her?! She's burned me before… Just once, I'd like to burn her back!"

Connie suddenly gasped, "I know how to burn people!" Lars looked up. "Wait right here—" Connie almost ran away but stopped and turned. "Actually, this might take a while, you better go home. See you tomorrow at work! Bring  
something edible!"

* * *

Lars was in the break room watching Kitten Court when Connie burst in. "Fire salt!" She creid, showing it over her head. "It burns people!"

"Connie, you're never this mischievous… Why are you doing this?" Lars asked.

Connie bit her lip. "Y-you're one of my only friends in this town… and I help friends when they are hurting…"

Lars then shoved a doughnut on a plate to her. "Here, I got it from my other work. Are we going to prank Sadie or not?"

Connie looked down at the salt. "Er, well… I'm not quite so-"

He snatched it from her and she gasped. "Lars?!-"

"Connie, Sadie hurt me a lot, you know what kind of pepole we would be if we hurt her back?" Lars asked.

Connie shrugged sadly. "Villains?"

"Heros."

The front bell suddenly rang and they saw Sadie walk in. "Oh, my back! Lars? I finally got out of bed but I don't think I can work today, either… Lars? Don't make me walk all the way to the break room!"

Lars grunted and poured a lot of fire salt on the doughnut. Connie almost stopped him… but didn't.

"Hello? Lars? Are you okay? Oh, are you slacking off?"

Lars came out. "Sadie."

"Hi, Sadie." Connie whispered, wondering if this was the right move. She often had to think these magic things through…

"Why is Connie in a uniform?" Sadie asked.

"That doesn't matter. How is your back?"

"It still.. hurts." Sadie blushed.

"Does it?" Lars grunted.

"Yes, but I know I can count on you to help, S.C!" Sadie smiled.

"Sure. Just relax, in fact, why don't you have a donut?" Lars said, pushing the doughnut forward.

"Oh, well, thank you." Sadie said. She bit into the doughnut. "Hey, this is pretty good, is this a new flavor or something?" Suddenly, her face swelled ano she breathed a persistent stream of fire. Lars gasped in horror  
and ran to grab the fire extinguisher off the wall. "Connie, help Sadie!"

Connie ran to Sadie. "Sadie, I'm going to get Lapis and she'll-" Sadie shoved her away and ran out the door.

"Sadie, come back!" Lars yelled. The sprinklers came on and he looked at Connie. "I'm so sorry, I should've listened!"

"It's fine, Lars, right now, we gotta go!"

* * *

Connie and Lars followed a path of flames. "She went this way, I'm almost certain!" Connie yelled.

".. And of the many treasures of our wonderful city, this is certainly one of the sweetest. As Mayor, I'm proud to unveil this, the largest bowl of ice cream in Beach county!" Mayor Dewey creid. The town cheered. "Yes, let's all  
scream, for ice cream."

Sadie suddenly ran into it, needing to cool herself down. The ice cream melted on the people. "Yeah, it melted, Gary." The Mayor said on his phone. Gary responded. "Well, you should've said that at the meeting!"

* * *

Lars and Connie caught up to Sadie and Connie saw Lapis with her jaw dropped.

"Lapis!" Connie yelled, running to her.

"Connie, why is that human breathing fire?!" Lapis yelled, grabbing the girl into a hug.

"I tried to prank Sadie but I used too much Fire Salt!" Connie cried.

"I'm having a word with Peridot when we get home!" Lapis groaned.

Sadie overheard Connie and ripped her from Lapis. "Connie!" Lapis creid.

Connie ran from Sadie and Lapis's grew angry. "No one hurts my Connie!" She yelled, the ocean rising. Lars saw it was aimed at Sadie and yelled, "SADIE, IT WAS ME!"

Sadie dropped Connie. Lapis ran to the girl and protectively went in front of her, despite her trying to escape.

Lars sighed softly while Sadie looked confused, struggling to breathe. "After all I do for you, you LIE to me? So you can sneak off with some other guys?!"

"And another girl." Connie whispered. Lapis covered her mouth.

"That night we watched movies, I don't know what it meant to you. But ever since then, I can't get the thought out of my head that you're a good person." Lars grabbed her hand. "That night, I really thought... Scaredy Cat.  
Is that just your way of saying I could've been anyone?"

"L-Lars…" Sadie choked.

Connie dodged Lapis and whispered softly to herself, " _Now if a customer chokes suddenly… State law requires that you assist them. Take both hands.. Push below the diaphragm_!" She ran to Sadie and performed the Heimlich maneuver.  
Sadie spat out a huge piece of the doughnut and Lars put it out. "Another day saved by Connie Universe! With bonus musical styling of Mr. Frowny!" Connie turned to Sadie. "I'm sorry I got you in this problem.."

Sadie ignored her and walked to Lars.

"I'm not apologizing." Lars muttered.

"No… I want to help." Sadie whispered.

"Oh," Lars said. "well, you can. But first let's get you some water." 


	22. Connie and the Connies

The Crystal Temps walked around the Sea Spire in a room filled with hourglasses.

Connie ran up to the smallest one. "Ooh, maybe it's this one?"

Peridot walked over and snorted, "Oh Connie, the legendary glass of time won't be nearly so small and insignificant. It'll be beautiful and grand." she turned to one made of metal. "Like this one!"

"Hm, this looks promising…" Lapis said, pointing to a interesting one.

"Wait!" Peridot said, before she could grab it. "We need to be careful which one we touch, you remember what happened last time we were here."

"I'm making the call," Jasper suddenly said, cracking her knuckles. "It's this one!" She attempted to pick up the biggest one in the center but the Spire started to shake. "Huh… guess it's not."

"Run!" Lapis yelled. Jasper grabbed Connie but she tore away. "WHERE ARE YOU GOING?!" Peridot screeched.

"Jasper gets to keep hers!" Connie said. Jasper realized it wouldn't fit and rolled her eyes, "Apparently not!"

Connie grabbed the little hourglass. "Come on, little guy!" A wave suddenly hit her and Lapis used her powers to make Connie come to her. "Good job, Lapis! Using your powers wisely, I see!" Peridot said. Lapis playfully  
punched her in the arm. The water suddenly smashed against the warp pad.

* * *

The water soaked the house thoroughly and Lapis used her power to lift it up and put it in her her door opened. She barely looked at it while flicking her wrist to put the water in. She heard a grunt and turned to see Jasper, Peridot and Connie  
had been straight in the water's path. "Oh, whoops!" Lapis said, chuckling nervously.

"I hope we won't have to do that again…" Connie said, wringing out her hair.

"Luckily for us... we'll have to wait another hundred years for the sea shrine to reform because somebody couldn't keep their hands to themselves." Peridot glared at Jasper.

"I go on instinct." Jasper smirked. "Also, you have a lobster on your butt."

Lapis giggled and Connie helped Peridot get it off.

"I'm sorry, little friend, but I can't protect life that goes onto my rear!" Peridot huffed.

A alarm suddenly went off and Connie gasped, "Beach-A-Palooza!"

"I'm not familiar with that term." Peridot said.

"That was cool, I'll be back soon!"

* * *

Connie hummed as she scootered to the Police Station.

"If it fit in here, it would regulations, however…" Doug whispered to Yellowtail.

"Huh, it's a tough one." Greg, owner of the Car Wash.

They looked at a massive boat that couldn't fit in the car wash.

Yellowtail gave a murmur.

"Dad! Hey, Dad!" Connie yelled.

Doug turned to her. "Um, we're having a bit of a day…"

Connie saw Greg extended her hand. "Hello, sir. I'm Co-"

"Connie? Connie Universe, right?" Greg asked, shaking it.

"How did you know my name?" Connie gasped.

"My son, Steven, he's your best friend, or so he says."

"That's true!" Connie laughed.

Yellowtail muttered something and Doug nodded. "Listen, sweetheart, I've can't perform tonight, I have to deal with this

"You're bailing on Beach-a-Palooza? But the whole town's gonna be there!" Connie creid.

"Connie, that's like 15 people. Next time. I promise."

Connie sadly walked away. "What a stupid boat, getting all stuck. Nobody likes you, boat! Ugh! I wish I could've been there to tell my dad you were too fat!" She blinked and then was suddenly next to her father and Greg again.

"That's it, just back 'er in." Greg said.

"I don't know if this'll work, Greg." Doug said.

"What-" Connie started.

"Oh, hi Connie, Greg, this is my daughter-"

It's fat! Fat! Fat! Fat!" Connie cried. Greg looked down at his stomach, "Well, that's one way to give an impression-"

"Not you! The boat!" Connie protested.

"Whoa! Whoa! Stop the boat!" Doug yelled.

Connie took out the little glowing hourglass from her pocket and gasped, "It helped me go back in time?! Peridot's going to flip!"

Yellowtail did stop but the truck rolled into a telephone pole that's wires caught fire which sent fire to the roof.

Connie stared with mortification. "I wish I could go back in time and stop myself from stopping my dad." She whispered. She blinked and found herself behind a double of herself. "What-" The second one gasped, this one  
just now seeing the power she held. Connie tackled Connie 2 to the ground and covered her mouth.

"Oh my gosh! How is this possible!" Connie 2 cried.

"It's not!" Connie said. "It's magic. Listen, 2-seconds ago Connie, don't going messing around with time!"

They suddenly heard a gasp from their father.

"Aw, man! I really wanted to play in Beach-a-Palooza. Too bad you and I can't be in a band." Connie 2 murmured.

"Wait a minute!"

Connie and Connie 2 tackled Connie 3 off her scooter.

"What?! There's two of me?!" Connie 3 cried.

"No time to explain!" Connie said.

"Wanna join our band?!" Connie 2 asked.

The third Connie still was shocked.

"Knowing myself, that's a yes, and because you're wondering, Dad has an emergency at the Car Wash." Connie said.

"So… pretending this is normal… don't we need a tambourine player?" Connie 3 asked.

"Not a problem!" Connie 2 cried, taking out the hourglass.

* * *

The Connies sang together. " _Can't you see it in my eyes, I'm the one, I'm the— ONE_!" Connie sang.

" _TWO_!" Connie 2 creid.

" _THREE_!"

" _FOUR_!"

" _I'm not like the other girls…_ " Connie sang.

" _She's not like anybody, well.._ " Connie 4 shrugged, playing the tambourine.

" _That's not completely right, there's a few that I'm just like…_ " Connie sighed, while herself sang in the background. " _Connie and the Connies. We're gonna make you smile! Me, myself, and I, and her_

 _Are all the same girl! Connie and the Connies, come on, now, don't be shy! Me, myself, and I and her, are all the same girl_!" Connie sang, finishing with her violin.

"Nice singing, Connie." Connie 2 said, putting down a triangle.

"Yeah, I liked that!" Connie 4 laughed.

"Thanks, Connie." Connie smiled.

"Can I sing lead next time?" Connie 2 asked.

"Well I usually sing lead vocals when I play with dad." Connie shrugged.

"So do I!" Connie 2 exclaimed.

"Me too!" Connie 3 said.

"Me three! We're all Connie!" Connie 4 gasped.

"Well one of us has got to be the band leader…" Connie whispered. She gave off a hmm with herselves.

"Oh! The leader should be the original Connie!" Connie 4 cried. All the Connies nodded in agreement.

"Done and done! Connie 2, you're the kind one, Connie 3, you're the funny one and Connie 4, you're the sensitive one and I'm... the smart one! Okay?" Connie asked herself, drawing numbers on their cheeks then putting hair in a ponytail

"Okay!" The Connies said.

"Okie-dokie artichoke-y!" Connie 4 cried.

"Connie 4, what are you doing? You're not the funny one. Connie 3 is."

"Well, we are all the same person so we are equally prone to being hilarious." Connie 3 shruged.

"No no, that was too smart an observation for you, 3! You're the funny one!" Connie groaned.

"Well, you're all being dumb." Connie 2 said rudely.

"Ugh,Number 2! You're the kind one!" Connie yelled.

"Hey. If Connie is the smart one, does that mean the rest of us are dumb?" Connie 4 gasped.

"No way! We are all extremely smart!" Connie 3 assured herself.

"Let's go get jobs as professors!" Connie 2 said.

"Hey! None of you are the smart one! I'm the smart one!" Connie yelled. The Connies looked sad. "Uh! No I didn't mean! We decided... urgh, lets take five."

"There's a fifth Connie!?" The Connies cried.

"No! I mean a five-minute break!" Connie sighed.

"We know!"

* * *

Connie sat on the railing of the beach house steps. "I can't believe it, I'm so... annoying. Maybe it's time for me to quit the music business…"

Suddenly, a loud blast of music ran through the house. Connie ran inside to see Connie 3 singing are bad song that was barely a song at all. "Whoa! What's all this noise? I thought we all agreed that Connie and the Connies was going  
to be a light-hearted throw back to the classics, not this mess of screaming into distortion!" Connie cried.

"Look, Connie. Connie and I were talking, and Connie agrees. Your attitude... just isn't working for us." Connie 3 said.

"We've been a lot more productive without you." Connie 2 smirked.

"We already wrote an angsty song about the time you made us feel bad for not being smart." Connie 4 huffed.

"You're kicking me out of the band?! Wait? Who's playing the tambourine?" Connie gasped.

"Lapis said she'd do it." Connie 3 shrugged.

Connie looked up at Lapis. "I said I would if you told me what was going on…" Lapis said, holding the tambourine to her chest. "And to be honest, I need to take my mind off it, it's really confusing…"

"But-" Connie gasped.

Suddenly, Connie 3 started singing. " _Connie's a big fat meanie!_ "

Connie unplugged the instruments suddenly.

Lapis gasped. "Oh no…."

"LISTEN UP! You can't kick me out of the band! I'm the original Connie. I created you! Connie and the Connies was my idea! Without me, you'd all be nothing!" The original suddenly gasped."That's it!"

Lapis watched Connie laugh maniacally and thrust up the time hourglass. She disappeared.

* * *

The Connie with her hair tied back ran to Connie who was shocked.

"Don't start the band, Connie! It will only tear us apart!" Connie yelled. Suddenly, the others appeared behind her. "Ha!" They laughed evily, "We all have the same thing!" They displayed the hourglass.

"No!" Connie gasped, clasping her hands to her mouth. She then grabbed her pocket, "You'll never find me!" She transported away. The others followed while past Connie stared in shock.

* * *

"I'm okay guys…" Connie sighed over the grave of her book many weeks earlier. Suddenly, the other Connies appeared. "What the-" She suddenly fell asleep in Lapis's arms, them a staring.

"Too far back!" Connie cried, her doubles attacking her.

* * *

She then appeared on the beach, but she didn't remember this time. "Ugh! I just want to go back to the beginning!"

* * *

"Jasper gets to keep hers!" Connie said. Jasper realized it wouldn't fit and rolled her eyes, "Apparently not!"

Connie grabbed the little hourglass. "Come on, little g-"

"STOP IT RIGHT THERE! Hand over the hourglass, now!" Connie with her hair tied back growled, thrusting out her hand.

Connie from the beginning looked at the hourglass still in her palm. "Is this real?!"

"Just give it to me!" Connie yelled, her eyes burning with anger. Suddenly, a double appeared and shoved her over.

Connie from the beginning backed away right into another clone. "Don't make me hurt myself, Connie!" The girl yelled, grabbing her arm. Connie tore away in fear. "W-what do you want from me?!" The original cried.

"JUST GIVE IT TO ME!"

More Connies started appearing around them that continued to fight.

"Oh, give it up, Connie!" The one attempting to take it chuckled. "I know exactly what you're going to do, when you're going to do it!" Connie was shoved into a puddle and cried out in pain. Her future self snatched away  
the device. The original looked up with fear and recoiled from the shadow as she towered over herself, laughing wickedly. The future then saw the past shaking.

The Crystal Temps were shocked and Lapis softly counted how many there were.

"STOP IT!" The future Connie screamed. Her clones looked up. "Look around you! This isn't right! When we fight ourselves… who is the winner? What have we become?" The Connies started to question themselves. "Only now  
do I see... we're not ourselves anymore! And to fix that... I HAVE TO END IT!" She threw the hourglass down, shattering it.

The Connies screamed around the two who had been fighting.

"Connie," Connie with her hair tied back whispered. She turned. "Dad can't play a Beach-A-Palooza with you! I know you, and I know this is hard, but you're going to have to think of something else!" The girl cried, gripping  
herself.

"WHAT IS GOING ON?!" Connie yelled.

The future her hugged her and whispered, "Goodbye…"

She vanished. Connie still had the sandy remains in her hands and her jaw hung open, dumbfounded. Water came in.

* * *

Lapis banged the tambourine on her hip at Beach-A-Palooza.

" _Can't you see it in our eyes? We're the one, we're the—One!_ " Connie sang.

" _Two!_ " Jasper said, playing a keytar.

" _Three_!" Peri hit the triangle.

" _Four_!" Lapis laughed.

" _We're not like the other guys…_ " Connie sang.

" _We're not like anybody!_ " Lapis smiled.

" _By the way, don't go back in time_ ," Lapis and Jasper sang togther in the background while Peri kept time. " _Or you'll destroy yourself! Connie and the Crystal Temps. We're gonna make you smile! I accidentally created, an alternate timeline._ "  
Peridot frowned and looked at Connie. " _Connie and the Crystal Temps, come on, now, don't be shy! I learned to stay true to myself, by watching myself die…_ " 


	23. Monster Friends

A ice monster smashed through the wall and Peridot yelled out, "One more attack, and it'll be done! I can do it!" She slashed its arm off and Connie gasped.

Jasper made her helmet and smashed the monster to the wall. It poofed.

"Now there's nothing standing between us and the Shooting Star!" Peridot laughed. "Let's go."

The cave then started to crumble.

"Guys, this place is really dangerous!" Lapis yelled, avoiding falling chunks of ice. She was suddenly buried in snow.

"Lapis!" Connie squealed. She ran to help. "Don't worry Lapis, I'm coming!"

Peridot suddenly grabbed her. "Jasper, we need to take Connie home right now! Her fragile half-human body won't stand well here!"

Jasper took Connie. "Kiddo, I'm sending you home. This mission is far too dangerous."

"But I-"

Jasper suddenly bubbled her. She sent Connie away, back to the temple.

"JASPER, YOU CLOD!"

* * *

Connie found herself in the burning room. She looked at the bubble next to her and saw it was the gem they had just beat. Connie pried the bubble apart and fell on another one, popping it.

She landed with a thud but then saw the gem reforming. "Oh no! What's happening?!"

The first monster she had ever faced reformed. It suddenly shrunk and she ran away from it. She then saw he looked almost like a little puppy…

"It looks... so scared." Connie breathed. She saw the monster tense up. "Um, hi. I-it's okay. Look, please don't be scared of me. See, I'm not gonna hurt you." She showed her empty hand. "Yeah, just relax, please." The thing started to calm  
down. "Yeah, that's it. "We can totally just hang out and relax, right here on the floor." Connie saw it approach. "Don't be shy. We can be friends. My name's-"

"CONNIE! Get away from that monster!" Peridot screeched.

"Oh my gosh, Connie!" Lapis gasped.

The Crystal Temps ran to her. Jasper made her helmet and had fury in her eyes. Connie slid in front of it. "Stop! Don't hurt it! It didn't do anything!"

Jasper slowed.

Connie gave a sigh. "I accidentally let it out of its bubble, but it didn't even try to hurt me. It's not like the other monsters, it's just scared and confused. Please… don't hurt it."

The gems looked at her with confusion. Jasper shrugged, "Yeah, okay."

"You can't be serious!" Peridot cried.

"Well, I am. Connie can train 'er up, right?"

Connie nodded. "Thank you…. Oh, thank you, thank you!" She raced into a hug. Jasper smiled and accepted it.

"I can't believe this…" Lapis muttered.

* * *

"Connie, you ready to calm it down?" Jasper asked.

Connie looked at the Centipeetle chained to a rock. She glanced back. "I… think it's still scared…"

The monster suddenly broke through a chain.

The gems and Lion readied to attack, Connie looked back. "Maybe… you could put your weapons away and watch from the house?" She whispered. They stared at her. "Please?"

"No!" Peridot growled.

Jasper's helmet disappeared. "Come on." She gestured to the house.

"JASPER!"

"Peridot."

Lapis looked after them and turned to Connie. "Can I-"

"I'm sorry, but no." Connie huffed.

Lapis gave a grumble then flew back to the house.

Connie turned to her new little friend and grinned. "Just us now."

The monster broke the other chain but Connie grabbed it before it could run away. "Shh… It's okay, just calm down little guy." She stroked it. She suddenly thought of something and pulled out a bag of vegetables. "Hey, do you like veggies?  
They're very tasty!"

She laughed as the thing chased her. She twirled around and offered a carrot. "How do you eat with a eyeball in your mouth?"

The thing ate it and she threw out more. The girl giggled and sang a little tune, "You like veggies and I like veggies!" But a seagull bit her finger, wanting the veggies. She cried out in pain and tried to shoo away the bird. The monster got angry  
and spit acid at the bird, making it fly away. Connie glanced at her. "You… saved me."

* * *

"We have to go back for the shooting star!" Peridot cried.

"Guys! Guys!" Connie yelled, running in.

"What's wrong?!" Lapis cried.

"Nothing! I trained her, look!" Connie said. She made grabbed her phone out of her pocket. She pressed play on a app and a seagull sound emitted.

The creature spat acid out but it hit the wall. "Whoa, little guy, calm it down, we burn monsters, not our walls…" Connie said.

"That beast is destroying the house!" Peridot growled.

"You're over reacting. It's just one hole…" Lapis smirked.

"She's better, I swear! She can help us on missions and stuff." Connie said.

"Ha, please! I barley need much assistance without it." Peridot said.

"Well, we can't go get the shooting Star with all that ice in the way… Maybe this little gal can help." Jasper said, petting it.

* * *

"I don't like this plan one bit. If I could heat my pole up to just the right-" Peridot was interrupted by Connie pressing on her seagull app and Centipeetle spitting a hole through the wall.

"Good job!" Connie laughed, giving her a piece of celery.

"Ugh…" Peridot groaned.

With the help of their new ally, the gems soon made it to the Shooting Star.

"Heh, heh, here it is! This Star is so hot, it could burn a human to a crisp!" Peridot squealed, her eyes stars.

"What do you do with the Shooting Star?" Connie whispered.

"Um… You shoot it, I'm guessing?" Lapis said.

Peridot bent her pole like tongs and was about to grab the star when a screech filled the room.

"No, not now!" Connie cried.

"Connie, what's wrong?" Jasper asked. Seeing the acid from its mouth, her helmet appeared.

The Centipeetle got more scared and spat acid at the celling. All the stalactites fell and the Temps screamed.

"That's it!" Peridot growled. Her pole came out of the water and she lunged at the monster. "DIE! DIE! DIE!"

Connie screamed and shielded it. "STOP! It was a accident!" Jasper jumped next the monster and attempted to hurt it but it ran away. Lapis used water to punch the thing away from Connie and the girl started to cry.

She ran to Centipeetle and hugged her. "It's okay! Stop! You don't need to fight! This isn't you! You're not a monster anymore! You're more than that. We have so many memories now! Remember when we ate veggies, And how you saved me? And we  
became friends?" She cried. "You have to remember! This all happened a few hours ago!" She saw acid running down her jacket but didn't care… There was a sudden rumble and Centipede shoved Connie away. Connie didn't know what had caused her to do such  
a thing until a giant stalactite fell on her. The girl screamed and the gem rolled to her.

"You saved me…"

Jasper touched her shoulder and Connie picked up the gem. "Kid... You did a good job trying to tame the Centipeetle. Your mother would be  
proud."

"She would?" Connie sniffed.

"Proud of strong kid like you? Definitely. Yellow had tried to use her powers to save these monsters too, but she was never able to heal them."

"But if she couldn't do it…" Connie whispered.

"Connie, when you have better control of your powers, you might help them in ways even your mother couldn't." Lapis said, squeezing her.

"I'll keep it safe." Connie vowed. A yellow bubble appeared in her hands around the gem.

"You can bubble Gems?! Since when?!" Peridot whispered.

"Wait for me, Centipeetle…." Connie whispered. "I'll heal you up someday, I promise." She bubbled it away. She then gasped.

* * *

In the Burning Room, next to Connie's new friend, the bag of veggies bubbled in. 


	24. An Indirect Kiss

Steven ran up the hill to the lighthouse and Lion followed, carrying a sad Connie on his back.

"Connie, come on!" Steven laughed.

Connie fell off Lion Steven looked at her, "Oh! Jeez, you okay?"

"Yeah…" She grumbled.

Steven winced in pain as he spread out the picnic blanket. He had a broken arm now. Connie was so sad, she forgot to ask why. Steven gave her a sandwich.

"Heh, you know how I broke my arm?" Steven smiled. "It's kinda because of this fence. I was balancing on it and fell."

Connie looked up from her sandwich. "Aw man, we built that fence to-"

"Did you use magic?" Steven asked.

"It's a long story!" Connie sighed.

"Tell it to me, please?!" Steven begged.

"Okay…."

* * *

Connie remembered the time… "Lapis and I were taking a flight and I wanted to stop by the light house."

Connie and Lapis landed there and Connie breathed in the fresh air. "This is nice." She smiled.

Lapis nodded. "It is."

Connie glanced over the cliff.

"Wouldn't it be cool to jump off this cliff and take flight?" Lapis asked. Connie bent down but accidentally slipped. She screamed and Lapis gasped.

Lapis jumped off and let herself fall. She eventually got herself benteh Connie and hugged the girl tightly. She tried to fly but Connie heard a defying crack as Lapis hit a rock. Connie rolled off her and looked at Lapis, whose hair covered  
a eye… "Are you okay?"

Lapis tried to stand but fell forward. She stood. "Well… I guess I'm fine…" Lapis then brushed her hair out of her eyes and one was normal while the other was milky white and reflective. Connie gasped and fell back.

"Lapis, let me see your gem this instant!" Peridot called, her and Jasper running to them.

Lapis shook her head but Jasper grabbed her by the waist and lifted her up. "Hey! Put me down!" Lapis growled. Jasper turned her and looked at the gem. "It's cracked. Ugh, Lapis!" She groaned.

"How did this happen?!" Peridot snapped.

"She saved me from falling off the lighthouse cliff…"Connie pointed. "We should put a fence there."

* * *

"And that's how we got the fence, the end." Connie said.

Steven blinked. "W-what?! But what about Lapis?! Is she ok? Tell me more! Tell me more!" Steven chanted.

"I'm too tired!" Connie grumbled.

"Connie?" Steven said, pouting his lip. "Connie…" His eyes grew big. "CONNIE!" Tears welled up in his eyes.

"Fine!" Connie sighed in defeat. "Nobody can say no to that face!" She then pulled out a marker. "Only if I can sign your cast."

"Only if I can have the rest of your juice!" Steven huffed.

"Okay, but it's mostly backwash." Connie said.

"Good enough." Steven shrugged. He took the juicebox and Connie started to write, she continued the story.

"I was scared for Lapis, we all were."

* * *

"Lapis has saved my life many times." Connie protested.

"But she never cracked her gem while doing it!" Peridot cried.

"So, what now?"

"Well, before we had the wonderful, amazing, shinning Yellow Diamond! ...Our diamond."

Connie noticed both Jasper and Lapis look away.

"But now… you have me." Connie whispered.

"Kid, your mother had healing tears that flowed from her gem. She felt real love for those around her. She felt real sorrow when they were hurt. You have the her gem, a diamond, now. I know that power is in you, too." Jasper smiled.

"Lapis, turn around!" Peridot snapped.

"Okay." She did.

"The power to heal." Connie whispered, diamonds in her eyes. She then started to moan in effort, trying to cry. "It's not working. I guess I'm just too tough to cry."

"But earlier you were crying when a kid blew bubbles across the street." Jasper said.

"YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY!" Connie sobbed.

"Calm down…" Jasper said. "We need to take Lapis to Yellow's Healing Spring."

Lapis hugged Connie close to comfort her. "Jasper! Not now! Can't you see Connie is-" Suddenly, her other eye turned white and she felt faint, slumping on Connie. "Ugh…"

* * *

"And in the center of the garden- Yellow Diamonds Fountain, overflowing with your mother's healing, beautiful essence!" Peridot whispered to Connie as they warped there.

Jasper looked at the garden of brambles and frowned. "Where is it?"

"Oh no…" Lapis breathed.

"Keep it together everyone! Don't get unfoucsed!" Peridot laughed nervously. "Our memories of our Diamond can't be tainted by some overgrown brambles!" She then growled in anger and started to hit the brambles with her  
pole. "DIE, YOU CLODY BRAMBLES! DIE I SAY!"

Jasper grabbed her shoulder. "Peri! Stop it!" The gem slowly did. "It's okay…"

"You think?" Peridot sniffed.

"Come on healing tears!" Connie strained.

"It's okay, Connie." Lapis whispered. "I'm going to be just-" she suddenly fell over and held back tears.

Connie gasped. "Oh! Pain can make one cry!"

Lapis whispered no but Connie didn't hear her in the gem's weak state.

Connie covered her eyes and reached out her finger to prick it on the bramble. Lapis saw the bramble about to grab her and used all the strength she had to shove Connie out of the way.

"Lapis! Stop exerting yourself!" Peridot yelled.

"The vines… are alive." Lapis whispered, but no one heard.

"Your gem!" Connie cried. The crack enlarged. Lapis fell once more, she was basically crawling now.

"Ugh, why won't they move?!" Peridot yelled.

Jasper hushed her and threw a giant rock, clearing a path.

Peridot stuttered while Jasper scooped up Lapis because she couldn't move on her own anymore and Connie trotted after them.

* * *

They came to the fountain and Connie looked up at the ginormous statue of her mother.

Connie gasped. "That's… my mother! Oh, I'm getting emotional!" She leaned over Lapis' gem, straining…

* * *

Connie frowned while writing on the cast."Aw, my marker's out of juice! I'll go get another." She was about to go when Steven grabbed her. "Finish the story!"

"Okay, okay!"

* * *

"I thought I had it!" Connie moaned.

"We'll find out what's wrong, Connie, just stay here with Lapis." Peridot said. Jasper gently placed Lapis on the edge of the fountain. They walked away. Connie gave a sigh. She felt Lapis's hand and turned to see she had dragged  
herself over. Connie sat down beside her. "I don't understand anything! Why is everyone acting so strange? Why can't I-" She looked up at the statue of her mother. "Why can't I cry?!" She yelled.

Connie got up and walked to the statue of her mother. "It's just... I mean, I don't know how to feel about you, but everyone else does... I wish I could have met you then this place would make me sad, and I could cry healing tears, like  
you." Connie whispered. She curled up in the stone woman's arms, wishing… she had a mother.

* * *

Steven sniffed back tears. "Are you okay? You're crying…" Connie whispered.

"Only a little!" The boy said. "Keep going."

* * *

The girl slowly picked up a yellow daisy.

Lapis stood suddenly with much effort. Connie saw and gasped. "Lapis! You're supposed to be resting!"

The woman pointed behind her and then fell, rolling down into the fountain. Connie turned and saw brambles trying to grab her. She gasped and jumped in the dry fountain.

Connie's eyes welled up with tears. "Lapis, I'm so sorry! I can't do anything right! Now I'm going to lose you, and it's all my fault." She hugged the woman who reached up and gently held her cheek. A tear fell and Lapis turned  
so it could be on her gem. Nothing happened.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Connie yelled.

Suddenly, the fountain rumbled. Water spilled out and went over the brambles, turning them to flowers. Connie held her breath, and looked up. She brushed away her hair to see a giant yellow woman reaching out to her. Connie reached out to  
touch the hand but then surfaced. She gasped for air, looking around wildly. Yellow Diamond was gone, and Connie didn't know if she had ever been there…

There was suddenly a huge splash and Lapis laughed with joy as water surrounded her, twirling with her wings. Her eyes were shining and normal.

"You saved me!" Lapis said, hugging Connie and using her powers to bring her to shore.

"You're both okay! I-I didn't expect otherwise…" Peridot laughed nervously.

"Did you see?! It was magic! Real magic! My magical tears saved Lapis, just like in the books I've read!" Connie laughed.

"Kid… Listen… I think we did it, we unplugged the fountain…" Jasper said, biting her lip.

"But… don't you think my tears were a tiny bit related to that?" Connie asked.

Peridot smiled and bent down. "Oh, silly Connie! You don't have healing tears! You'll never have any real magic powers, you are utterly useless, we don't want anything to do with you, and you are a clod!"

* * *

"She didn't really say that, did she?!" Steven cried.

"No… but it sure felt like it…" Connie sighed.

"That's why you're so upset!" Steven gasped.

Connie shrugged.

"Here, you can have your juice back…" Steven whispered.

"I don't want it." Connie sighed. "Everyone expects me to be like my mom. What if I never get those powers?"

"Then you'll be like me. That's not so bad!" Steven said.

"But if I don't have powers, then I can't hang out with Lapis or Jasper or Peridot, and I-I can't go on missions!" Tears started coming and she clenched her dress, twisting it. Steven touched her hand.

"You don't need any powers to be here with me." Steven said. He sucked in some juice while Connie blushed, the wind whistling in their hair.

Steven leaned in, to kiss Connie, moving his broken arm slightly, but he suddenly flinched. "Ghaa!"

"What's wrong?!" Connie gasped.

Steven looked at his arm. "My arm! It's not broken anymore!"

"What?!" Connie cried.

"It's healed!"

"Did I… heal your arm?" Connie whispered.

"The juice box!" Steven suddenly cried. "Connie, you don't have healing tears, you have healing spit!"

"What are you going to tell you dad? Your doctor?" Connie gasped.

"I don't care!" Steven laughed. He took Connie's hand. "Go on Lion, go tell the gems!"

"But-"

He pushed her to Lion. "Go! I'll be there soon!" Connie giggled and got on Lion. "I'm going! I'm going!"

Steven watched Lion run with Connie on his back and smiled. He slowly unwrapped the bandages from his arm and moved it. 


	25. Mirror Gem

"Well, where are you going?" Connie sighed, talking on phone with Steven.

"To help Dad with the car wash, then it's dinner time…" Steven sighed. "But I can hang out all day tomorrow! And I'll come over all the time now that it's Summer Vacation!"

"Oh! I've heard of that! That's a long break for kids in school…. Right?" Connie asked.

"Yeah!" Steven said.

* * *

"But Peridot, I really, really want School!" Connie cried.

"What even is school?" Peridot groaned.

"It teaches you stuff! Like math, science,-"

"Teach you?!" Peridot gasped, stars in her eyes. "Oh, you are in the pursuit of knowledge, like me!why didn't you tell me?!" She whispered.

"Well-"

"I can teach you everything you need! Well, me and this." Her gem suddenly glowed. Connie gasped in wonder as a beautiful mirror came from her gem. It was a white hand mirror with diamond designs at the edges of the glass. But it's  
most important detail was a shining purple gem, but it was cracked. Connie held it and looked down. "We found this Gem-powered mirror at the Galaxy Warp. It can capture and display any event it's witnessed in all of Gem history." Peridot  
explained.

Peridot walked over and smirked down at the mirror. "Show is the galaxy warp."

Nothing…

Peridot grabbed the mirror. "Show us the galaxy warp, now! I know you've seen it!" She looked at the mirror and sighed. "I guess it's finally broken…"

"It doesn't seem broken to me!" Connie smiled at her reflection.

"I suppose that's the end of our school!" Peridot sighed.

"So, could you say school's out for the summer?"

"Does that mean done? Over with? Destroyed? If it does, then yes."

Connie gave a cry in triumph and ran out.

* * *

Connie ran outside, holding the mirror. She laughed. "It's Summer! Yeah!"

She suddenly ran right into Sadie.

"Hey, watch out, Connie!" Sadie growled.

"Sorry…" Connie blushed. "I'm just so excited for summer. Are you excited for summer?"

"Uh, I think I'm as excited as I can get about setting up extra seating for the summer rush. But Sadie has big plans." Lars said. Sadie nodded. "To be sure. All those out-of-town summer guys traveling away from home without their  
girlfriends, if you know what I mean."

"Nope." Connie said innocently.

"Maybe I'll get a few numbers. Maybe I'll even... call one." Sadie blushed.

"Ha! Well, yeah, maybe I'll meet a new friend." Lars chuckled.

"Hm… I should try to get out of my comfort zone! I'm gonna to make a new friend!"

Connie skipped off and skipped onto the road, not seeing the Mayor's van. "Hey, watch out, Connie!" A familiar voice called. "Sadie?"

The van screeched to a halt and Connie screamed out, "No!"

"You, Police guy's kid, what are you doing on the road?" Mayor Dewey growled.

"Er, sir, I… Wait, why are you driving on the boardwalk?" Connie asked.

"I'm the mayor— I'm not going to walk anywhere. Now, go get run over somewhere else. I'm late for a speech." The Mayor said. He drove again.

"What just happened?" Connie whispired. She then heard her own laugh and looked down at the mirror, who reflected that moment back.

"You work! This is incredible! What's it like being a mirror?" Connie asked.

The mirror rippled and repeated back her words, "You work!"

"Oh, so you repeat things?" Connie smiled.

The mirror repeated her word once she had ran outside. "Yeah!"

Connie ran up to the Mayor's speech and saw Steven. She brushed down her hair and ran to him.

"Hi, Steven!"

He turned and smiled. "Oh, hey!"

The Mayor then started his speech. "Hello, Beach City, my friends! It's great to be here to celebrate the coming season. A warm summer breeze wafts through the air."

Steven suddenly put his hand in his mouth and made a fart noise. Connie held back her laughter not wanting to be rude to everyone else, but they were snickering too.

"We all look forward to the sounds of the summer season…"

Connie tried to do it but failed, suddenly, the mirror made the noise. Steven looked at it with awe.

"... the smells of the busy boardwalk…"

Again, the mirror repeated.

"... the hot, wet ocean wind…"

The mirror made the noise.

"... the time to take that pressure that's built up all year and just let it out."

It happened again, making the people, Steven, and Connie laugh.

* * *

"You're really funny for a mirror." Connie said, laying on the Beach that night.

"You're really funny for a mirror." The mirror repeated.

"I'm not a mirror!" Connie giggled.

"You're pretty funny for a - Connie!" The mirror repeated but also added Sadie's words.

"You made something new! Say something else!" Connie cried.

"Connie— is— a new friend." The mirror said, using clips from the day.

"Really?" Connie blushed.

"Yeah!" She watched herself.

"Well, thank you! You're my friend too!" Connie laughed.

The mirror repeated her giggle.

"I've got to go introduce you to the Temps!" Connie said, standing up.

"No!" The mirror said.

"Don't be shy, they'll love you." Connie smiled.

"Noooo!" The mirror repeated its distress but Connie giggled, "I know it's scary to meet new people, but they're really nice, I promise you!"

* * *

"Guys!" Connie cried, bursting through the door.

"Hi, sweetheart." Lapis grinned.

"Good evening, Connie." Peridot said.

"Sup." Jasper waved.

Jasper and Lapis sat on the couch, Lapis molding water while Peridot was fiddling with a gadget.

"Look at this." Lapis smiled. Her water flew over to Peridot's pile of parts and they made a little show, flying around the room.

"Lapis, they're all rusted now!" Peridot growled.

"Whoops." Lapis blushed.

"Cool.. Oh! I fixed the mirror!" Connie cried.

"Wonderful!" Peridot grinned. The others smiled.

"Why didn't you tell me it was like a person?" Connie asked innocently.

The gems smiles faded. Jasper instinctively curled her hands into fists, Peridot dropped her wrench, and Lapis bit her lip. "That's impossible…" Peridot whispered.

"No, it's not. Say "hi." Connie said to the mirror, showing it.

The gems stared, nothing...

"Little friend?" Connie whispered, turning to the mirror who seemed to speak, but only to her. "Excuse us…" She said, turning away from the Temps. "You want to come out, don't you? You have so much to say, to share  
from across the ages. Are we not friends anymore?"

The mirror seemed to wait then, made the fart noise. Connie smiled softly. "I'm glad…"

"Just for - you - Connie!" Lars and Sadie in the mirror said.

"It's talking to her…" Lapis whispered.

"It shouldn't be able to do that. I-it should just be following orders…" Peridot hissed.

"Jasper, do something." Lapis cried.

"Hey, kid," Jasper said, walking up to Connie. The mirror stopped giggling and started yelling, "NOOOO!"

"Give me the mirror, kiddo, it will be safer where we can watch it…"

"Connie, sweetie, we have to bubble it." Lapis whispered.

Connie heard the mirror yelling, "NOOO!"

"But-"

"Connie, don't make me take it from you…." Jasper growled, Connie wishing she would call her kiddo as she always did.

"It doesn't want to go with you. Don't you hear it screaming?" Connie cried, backing into a wall, holding the mirror close.

Jasper struggled to stay calm. "It's a mirror, it can't want anything!"

Connie looked at the mirror, it crying in horror over and over. "Don't hurt it!"

"Give me the mirror, NOW!"

"IT WANTS TO BE WITH ME!" Connie screeched. She then did something she would never, ever in her half immortal life forget… She reached behind her to grab her mother's sword she now always wore on her back on a crudely made sheath.  
She swung it out threateningly, her training instincts coming into play. Jasper fell back in shock. She looked back at her Connie, a once innocent girl, and looked angry.

Lapis gasped, her hands to her mouth, and Peridot fell into her, nearly fainting.

"What… have I done…" Connie whispered. She dropped her sword out of shock. "I'm sorry!" She cried, running away.

Jasper breathed angrily, teeth bared, eyes flashing.

"Jasper… promise you won't shatter her…" Lapis whispered.

* * *

Connie ran, tears in her eyes. She truly did that! She really just pulled out her sword at Jasper! Why?! She looked down at the mirror. That was why, her new friend. "Oh, what am I going to do?! What's their problem with you? Are you trying  
to say something?" She asked the mirror. It rippled then said with different people, "Away from home," Sadie said. "Let!" Mayor Dewey said. "Me!" Connie yelled. "Out!" Jasper cried. It sounded so desperate…

"But… how?!" Connie sobbed.

"Connie!" Peridot yelled from a distance.

"Okay, I want to help you, what can I do?!"

The mirror's surface warbled and Connie saw a light violet version of herself pull out the dark purple gem on the back. She felt her heart thud. Her eyes shinning with tears, she gripped the gem and took it out with much effort. She cried  
out as the mirror shattered.

The gem suddenly formed a human shape around it and a young woman with violet skin and white hair glitched before she fell over.

Connie gasped, hesitated, but ran to help her stand. The woman was short but didn't seem to have anything wrong with her until she glitched. "T-Thanks…" She croaked. She almost fell over but Connie caught her. "You…. you talked to  
me!" The gem cried.

"And you saved me… You know, you're a real pal, Connie. I'm Amethyst, by the way." She ruffled the shocked girl's hair. "Now, what are ya really, hm?"

Connie looked at her. "What do you mean?"

"You can't be a Crystal Temp!" The gem smiled.

"Why can't I? I mean, I am."

Amethyst started to chuckle until she saw Connie's face. "Y-You're not joking?"

"I'm afraid not…"

"But.. you set me free, and they-" Amethyst stopped when she heard voices.

"CONNIE!" Jasper bellowed. Connie gasped and leapt in front of Amethyst.

The gems made their weapons appear and Lapis frowned. She almost felt sympathy for the poor gem, being trapped in that mirror… almost.

"Wait,-" Connie started.

"You…"

She turned to see Amethyst make her weapon, two whips. "You three knew I was in there and you did nothing! Do you even know who I used to be?!" The gem snarled, eyes flashing. Her whips caught fire and she slapped them at Jasper,  
knocking her to the ground. Amethyst put her arms out and the whips hit both Lapis and Peridot. They cried out in pain and fell.

"What are you doing?!" Connie cried.

"My name is Amethyst and you can't keep me here anymore!" She yelled.

Connie was about to run to her family but Amethyst grabbed her arm. "Come on, Connie, let's go!" The gem flung her whips down and they created a path of flames in the ocean, drying the water up.

"Go where?!" Connie asked.

Amethyst smiled softly. "Home. To my friends… my family."

Connie slowly took her hand away. "... No."

Amethyst looked sad and angry. "F-Fine! I don't need you anyway." Jasper suddenly rose and Amethyst turned. "Don't trust them, Connie… See ya'..."

Connie watched her leave, the water blocked from going back with the flames.

"Are you okay?!" Lapis cried, running and hugging her. Connie numbly nodded. "That was another gem…"

"Indeed." Peridot sighed.

"Connie… you're grounded." Jasper whispered. 


	26. Whip Gem

"I'm… grounded?!" Connie gasped in her room.

"Of course you are!" Peridot growled.

"You disobeyed an order!" Jasper snarled.

"And you pointed your sword at Jasper! You scared us!" Lapis cried. She grabbed her head. "Whoa… Something's wrong with the-"

"I'm sorry-" Connie said, when the door suddenly burst open. Doug panted for air.

"Dad?!" Connie gasped.

"You guys really need to see this!"

* * *

They ran to the beach and saw the people of Beach City sweating.

"The ocean!" Connie gasped. The ocean was gone, they saw patches of purple flames everywhere.

"Hey, it's those magical ladies! What's going on here?" The Mayor asked in a megaphone, walking up to Jasper.

"Um, if you haven't noticed, the ocean dried up, buddy." Jasper said.

"That's right. Now it's just a desert. No one wants to take a vacation to... Desert City! Aww, we're gonna lose all our summer business!"

"Who's gonna buy my fries?" Mr. Fryman cried.

"And my pizza!" Mr. Pizza growled.

"Who's gonna have fun at Funland… I'm so distressed…" Mr. Frowny sighed.

"As mayor, I DEMAND you explain this immediately!" Jasper grabbed the mayor's megaphone and broke it over her knee. "Listen up, people, it was Amethyst."

"Amethyst?" Connie asked.

"The gem you released from the mirror, the horrible gem who destroyed the ocean, my entire… life!" Lapis growled, water coming from her gem and molding into a sculpture of Amethyst.

The town gasped.

"It was you!" Mayor Dewey yelled, pointing at Lapis.

"Excuse me?!" Lapis snarled. "It was not me!"

* * *

Connie packed food and water, putting her sword which was in the sheath Connie had made for it on her back. She started to walk to the door when Steven whispered, "Where ya' going?"

"I'm leaving to fix what I did to our home…" Connie sighed. "I was the one who set Amethyst free from the mirror. Now it's my fault the ocean's gone. I'm gonna bring the ocean back or get die trying."

"Don't think you're going without me, pumpkin." Doug said, taking her hand.

"I'm coming too! I want to see some more magic!" Steven winked.

Lion walked up and put his paw on his mistress's head, roaring as if to say he wanted to help.

"Oh ho, you're not leaving without us!" Peridot chuckled.

"You're ungrounded, for now." Jasper smiled.

"Hooray! Family road trip!" Lapis laughed.

* * *

Peridot was in the back of Doug's police car while Jasper and Doug sat in the front, Lapis was flying level to the car, and Connie with Steven were riding on Lion with Connie in the front.

"How about some tunes? This was one of Yellow's favorites." Doug smiled. Gentle piano music started to play.

"Wow… You're trying hard… and I appreciate that, but-" Peridot smiled nervously.

"What do you think, Jasper? You like it, don't you?" Doug asked.

Jasper frowned and opened the car door, rolling out.

* * *

Later at night, Steven had fallen asleep, Connie was wide awake and determined. Peridot was driving while Doug was sleeping in the back. Lapis was tired from flying all day and was laying, watching the stars, beside Jasper, who was snoring fastasleep.

Lion walked over to the car window. "How are you two faring?" Connie yawned to Lapis and Peridot.

"I miss the ocean…" Lapis sighed.

"I can't believe Amethystwould do this. Gems shouldn't fight each other." Connie sighed.

"We're always fighting Gems, actually." Lapis whispered.

"What?!" Connie gasped.

"Connie… you see, well... All Gems aren't necessarily... good." Lapis sighed.

"All those monster we fight used to be just like us, but they failed to stay away from… them." Peridot muttered.

"Yes. They've become corrupted and broken... We have to take care of them, subdue them, contain them. It's the best we can do for them, for now. If we don't, then…" Lapis' voice faded when she saw a huge ring of purple fire. "Whoa…"

Steven awoke and gasped. "Cool!"

They all looked at him. "I mean… darn it!"

Jasper and Doug soon were ready, Doug whispering, "Guys, I just had the best idea for an album cover…."

"This is it. Amethyst is definitely here." Jasper said.

"I don't understand. What does she want with the ocean? If she messes with the ocean, she messes with me!" Lapis growled.

"Whoa…" Steven whispered.

Suddenly, a voice yelled out, "Get out of here, now!"

"Amethyst! It's me, Connie!" Connie cried.

There was a pause before the flames parted with her whips. Amethyst looked at Connie, one eye normal and one like a googly eye, her crack getting worse. She walked up to her. "Run now, before I make you."

"But… I thought we were friends!" Connie whispered.

"Not anymore!" Amethyst yelled, practically shoving Connie and Steven away. "You're one of them. One of the sissy Crystal Temps!" The gem growled, walking up to them and taunting them.

Jasper and Peridot growled back but Lapis grabbed their arms. "Stay focused!"

"What do you mean?" Connie cried, running after Amethyst who was walking back to the flames. "We're all Gems, right? Just let us help you."

"You don't understand. Just leave me alone…" Amethyst growled.

"No!" Connie yelled, grabbing a whip and pulling on it. "We're not leaving. Not until you give us back our ocean!" She pulled harder.

"I said…" Amethyst turned with fire in her eyes. "LEAVE ME ALONE!"

She grabbed her whip and threw Connie away into her father.

"Doug, children, stay behind us!" Peridot snapped.

Steven ran to Connie and the gems made thier weapons. Amethyst grinned dangerously.

"Whatever you do, don't let her separate u-" Amethyst's whip slammed Jasper away. Connie gasped.

Lapis gave a war cry, her water turning into a clone of Amethyst. The woman was quick to dodge and her whip wrapped around Lapis. The gem grunted in pain as their spikes drove into her body. Amethyst ripped the whip off her, causing Lapis

to scream. The water clone evaporated.

Peridot tried to stab Amethyst but the gem rolled into a white blur and slammed into Peridot. The gem yelled and fell to the ground.

Lion ran up to the gem but she shapeshifted into massive wrestler and punched him away into the Police car, wrecking it.

"NO!" Connie screamed.

"REVENGE!" Steven yelled.

"REVENGE!" Connie repeated.

Steven threw rocks at Amethyst while Connie drew her sword.

Amethyst's big wrestler body grabbed them both by their small necks. "Now, which one of you wants to feel my anger first?"

"Kids!" Doug gasped.

They choked for air until Doug ran into Amethyst with his car.

"Steven!" Connie cried, running to help him stand.

"Is this a NORMAL magical mission for you? Because I'm not so sure how comfortable I am with you going on these-"

Connie thought it was finally over until Amethyst punched the car high into the air.

She screamed and the car slammed to the ground. "DAD!"

"Ugh, I think my arm's broken. See, this is why we wear seatbelts, kids." Doug coughed, falling out. Connie turned to Amethyst.

"That's it!" Connie yelled. "I don't want to fight anymore!" She stepped in front of Steven and her father, pointing her sword at Amethyst.

Amethyst's whips glowed with purple fire and they both wrapped around the girl's blade.

"I said…" Connie whispered. "I DON'T WANT TO FIGHT ANYMORE!" She slammed her sword down and a matalic bang resounded from it. It knocked Amethyst away and awoke the hurt gems.

Amethyst looked up at the girl with a weak grin. "What do you want than?"

Connie sighed softly.

"Connie?" Steven whispered.

"I want to talk with you…"

"It's a deal." Amethyst said. Connie was suddenly wrapped in a whip, and pulled to the circle of flames. Amethyst walked over and wrenched the sword out of her hand. "Just so you don't get any… ideas, okay?"

"Connie!" The gems yelled.

"Oh, be quiet!" Amethyst growled, glitching slightly.

The flames parted and she pulled Connie in.

"What are you doing here, Connie?" Amethyst asked.

"What are _you_ doing here?! You dried up the ocean! This is insane! Can't we work this out?!" Connie cried.

Amethyst pulled her whip closer, making Connie trip over. "Don't you know anything, you silly kid? Your friends, they don't really care about other Gems! All they care about is the Earth… But I never believed in this place…" Shesat down and looked  
at the sky.

Connie managed to untangle herself and sat down. "W-what do you mean?"

"I just want to go home…" Amethyst whispered.

"I know how important home can be. But that's why I'm here. You took the ocean away, and the ocean is an important part of my home." Connie sighed.

"I only dried up the ocean because… well, I'm angry, Connie. Nothing can heal my gem at home, nothing can heal my gem here, I'm doomed, pal o' mine." Amethyst chuckled sadly.

Connie looked at Amethyst gem and gasped, "Oh! I can fix your gem. I have healing powers!"

"Really?!" Amethyst cried.

"Really!" Connie giggled.

Amethyst let out a happy squeal and and punched the air. "I'm going home! I'm gonna see my friends!"

Connie laughed and grabbed her shoulders. "Hold still! This might be a little weird." She licked her hand and slapped it onto Amethyst's gem. It glowed and healed. Amethyst's eye went back to normal and she stopped glitching.

"Thanks, Connie!" She gave Connie a bear hug. "Listen I gotta go, ok?"

"Ok… Be safe."

Amethyst shapeshifted into a bird and cawed to the girl who smiled. Amethyst flew off.

Connie then heard a rumble and gasped. The water was flowing back from every side, as if a switch had been turned on.

Connie ran to the car but tripped. Water was about to hit her when Steven warped next to her on Lion. He offered his hand and pulled her up.

* * *

The ocean soon returned and Lapis had made a pocket of air so they could get home.

The car broke down immediately. "Heh…. BOOKS!" Peridot said, trying to remember what he and Yellow always said.

Lapis giggled and hugged Lion. She felt her teammates watching and turned.

"So… Amethyst got away…" Jasper sighed.

"What does that mean for us?" Peridot whispered.

"We wait and see…." Lapis murmured.

The people picked up Connie and Steven. They laughed and Connie paused to look at the star filled sky. She saw one twinkling at her. "I guess… I'll see you, Amethyst," She gave a weak smile. "wherever you are."


	27. House Guest

Peridot lifted the hood of Doug's car and whispered, "Everything must go…"

"Whoa! Easy there!" Lapis cried, grabbing her around the waist and pulling Peridot away from the car before she could pull everything out.

"Lazuli, It's just a simple human machine. I can figure this whole thing out before you know it!" Peridot huffed.

"Hello everyone!" Connie cried, running with her father not far behind. He had bandaged up his broken arm. "How are you guys doing? I found something that will patch this right up!"

"Oh, is it a complex human tool?" Jasper asked, leaning on the wall.

"Nope!" He pulled out a roll of duct tape with his good arm. "High-quality duct tape! Some well placed duct tape can patch anything up!"

"I don't need your… animal tape." Peridot said.

"Here, look at the label, it says duct tape, not duck- Ow!" Doug bent his arm too far and it stung.

Connie gasped and ran over. "Oh, dad, I'm sorry that you hurt your arm and that your car got smashed up because of me…."

Doug smiled and patted her head. "You apologize too much. Maybe I shouldn't have tagged along in that crazy adventure. But at least I got to spend some time with my fave girl!"

"Oh! Dad! It might be hard for you in that little house you live in with a broken arm… What if you stayed with us until you got better?"

"Hey, that's a great idea! But, won't I get in the way of your training?" Doug asked.

"Yes!" Peridot growled.

"Wait, Connie. Don't you have healing powers now?" Lapis whispered.

"She does! You fix your father, I'll fix the car," Then Peridot murmured, "nobody has to live with us."

"Oh, of course!" Connie cried. "Here goes something new and exciting…." She licked her hand and touched Doug's arm. He then attempted to straighten it but fell back in pain.

"Why didn't it work?" Connie gasped.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. Maybe you just need a little more practice." Doug whispered.

"But... I was doing so well before!" Connie whimpered.

"Connie, powers take time... Mine did." Peridot grinned.

"You'll get it!" Jasper said, playfully punching her arm.

"At least now we get to spend some more time together, right?" Doug grinned.

"Um, yeah." Connie sighed.

* * *

" _Dear old dad, remember when you would sing to me, we could do it again."_ Connie made her father lunch. " _Dear old dad, remember how_

 _I would sit on your shoulders, well how about it now…._ "

Connie and Doug were watching a funny tv show when Doug accidentally spilled soda on himself. " _Dear old dad, I was wondering why as I get older now, the days keep going on by…. Dear old dad, remember this too. In this whole wide world there's no one like you, ooh ooh ooh….There's no one like you, ooh ooh ooh…"_

Connie helped Doug cleanup. While the girl went inside for a moment and Doug saw his acoustic guitar and Connie's violin. He started to play and gave Connie her violin. " _My darling girl, I remember when I would sing to you, and I would do it again… Beloved child, remember this too._

 _In this world of Gems, there's no one like you, ooh ooh ooh."_

Connie started to sing with him, playing her violin. " _You ooh ooh ooh… You ooh ooh ooh… You ooh ooh ooh…_ "

* * *

Later, Lapis, Connie, and Doug were throwing paper airplanes. Lapis smirked as she threw one, "I could go faster than I real one of these."

The door then opened and Peridot wiped grease off herself.

The warp pad suddenly glowed and Jasper appeared. "Guys, get over here, the Geode is cracked!"

"WHAT?!" Peridot gasped, running to the thing.

"How?" Lapis murmured, running after her.

"Come on, kiddo, let's move!" Connie grinned and ran to her her sword but saw her father sigh. She hesitated. "I… better stay with dad…"

"Oh no, pumpkin! You go on your mission! Your goofy old dad will just stay here…. with his broken arm…"

Connie slowly walked to the warp pad and looked at the gems. "Could there be anyway we could… keep in touch?"

Peridot gasped when Lapis swiped something from around her neck. "Lapis, that's mine!"

Lapis held a whistle above Peridot's reach. "Peri made this for Connie when she was little…" Lapis smirked. "I'm pretty sure she thought Connie wouldn't be able to use her powers…" Connie frowned. "B-but you can!"  
Peridot said.

"Here Doug, you can use it. It's a warp whistle. Blow it and the warp pad will tell us to come home." Lapis said, dropping it in his lap.

"I DON'T WANNA GIVE MY STUFF TO DOUG!" Peridot screeched.

* * *

The Crystal Temps appeared at the Geode.

"Whoa…" Connie gasped.

"Yes, it is quite the catastrophe… What you're looking at is a synthetic storm that was contained in—" They heard a light little tune and turned to the warp pad. "That's my whistle…"

"Dad needs me!"

* * *

"Dad! I'm here! What happened?!" Connie cried. Doug looked up at her and blushed. "Oh! Er, just checking if this thing works…"

"Oh… er… that makes sense." Connie said. "I gotta go, love you!"

* * *

"Is Doug alive?" Peridot asked.

"Did he fall over and hurt himself?" Lapis whispered.

Connie shook her head

"Like I was saying before we were rudely interrupted, this is a synthetic—" Peridot said.

The warp pad signaled again.

"I'm sure it's very important…" Connie blushed.

* * *

"Dad?" Connie panted.

Doug bit his lip. "Sorry, but I can't find my bookmark…"

"The one with puppies on it?"

"You know it."

"That is important…."

* * *

"It was very important." Connie said.

"Okay, so if the Geode breaks, then the storm will be unleashed and our bodies will be vaporized…" Peridot whispered.

"We'd… die, if that happened…" Connie said.

"That's where you come in," Jasper said, pointing to the crack in the Geode. "It's all you, kiddo."

"But what if my powers don't work?" Connie whispered.

"Eh, give it all you got." Jasper winked.

Connie licked her hand and touched the wall. As she expected, nothing happened.

"I knew this would happen… Just when I thought I was getting better…" Connie sighed.

"Don't beat yourself up!" Jasper said.

"It'll get better, Connie." Lapis smiled weakly.

"Yeah! Your powers are being a clod." Peridot shrugged.

"You don't understand." Connie sighed. "How am I supposed to call myself a Crystal Temp, if I can't even—"

The warp whistle then called them. Connie gasped.

* * *

The Crystal Temps warped back and Connie ran to her father. "Dad! Dad! Answer me!"

Doug awoke from a nap and gasped. "Oh, Connie, you missed the funniest commercial!"

"D-Dad, I don't even watch tv! You're only supposed to use the Warp Whistle for emergencies. Like if you fell down and hurt yourself!" Connie sighed.

"I'm sorry…" Doug said. "Oh, since you're here, could you pick up that book I ordered? It should be at the bookstore."

"Oh! Of course." Connie smiled.

"We'll be in the temple, coming up with a new plan." Jasper sighed. She and Peridot walked into the temple while Lapis smiled at Connie. "No worries about before, you'll get it."

"Thanks." Connie smiled.

"Also, could you grab me a romance novel while you're at the bookshop?"

"Yep." Connie said, walking out. She was walking down the creaky wooden steps when she realized, "I forgot to ask did what his book's called!"

She raced back up and saw her father through the window. He was reshelving her books according to author. Connie was wide eyed and walked in.

Doug felt her watching and gasped, dropping the books from his perfectly not-broken arm. "Connie! Oh, you had me scared there, pumpkin. Didn't see you... standing in the doorway. Your dad's still got it!" Connie's face of shock turned  
to anger.

"Honey…. You ognized these all wrong! I mean, why be color?" Doug laughed nervously.

"BECAUSE I CAN FIND THEM EASIER!" Connie suddenly yelled. "Just… Your arm wasn't even broken at all, was it?!"

"It was broken, but you healed it back at the car wash." Doug admitted.

"You lied to me!" Connie yelled, tears in her eyes. "Now I can't do it anymore!"

"What?" Doug whispered.

"The Gems needed me to fix the broken rock, but my healing powers aren't working. It-it's because of you, you messed with my head!" Connie cried.

"No! I didn't mean to... I just wanted to live with my baby girl again, Connie!" Doug insited.

"I really thought I was getting better," Connie sighed. "I finally felt like a Crystal Temp. Now, what if I can't do anything?!" She sobbed.

"Connie, honey, please don't beat yourself up! This is my fault!" Doug cried.

Connie blinked away tears. "Yeah! Yeah it is!"

She ran out the door and looked out at the ocean. "What am I going to do? My powers, they're—" Connie stopped when she saw her violin and her father's guitar. She rembered how much she loved her father, and the song she had sang to him…  
She ran back inside. " I'm sorry, I... Dad!" She gasped, seeing her father with his toolbox and flashlight on the warp pad.

"It's time for me to fix the trouble I've caused." Doug then blew the warpwhistle and started to vanish. Connie raced into the warp.

* * *

"Dad, be careful!" Connie yelled.

"Don't worry, Connie! Your dad's gonna- woah!" Doug fell over from the winds.

"Are you okay?" Connie gasped, helping him up, her hair whipping in the wind.

"Connie, get out of here! I'm responsible for this!" Doug sighed.

"No, you're not." Connie whispered as they approached the Geode.

"But, I messed up your powers! I did everything I'm not supposed to do, and now you can't heal!" Her father yelled.

"I healed you, right?" Connie whisperes with a weak grin.

Doug smiled back. "Hey, get in there and fix things up, just like you fixed up your father!"

Connie licked back hands and with a cry, putting them against the wall. "It's still not working!"

"Ah, forget it! I've got another idea!" Doug yelled. He put some ductape on the crack. "There, see, as good as new!"

* * *

Connie smiled watching Doug look at his police car with shock while Peridot listed all she had done. "So, I've realigned the axles…"

"I can't believe it!" Doug cried.

"... Replaced the spark plugs…"

"How can I leave this on my stake outs?!"

"... Sealed the leaks in the intake manifold gaskets, and recalibrated the timing belt. As long as you ease up on second gear, your transmission should be fine." Peridot said.

"Peridotl! I can't thank you enough! Haha!" Doug hugged the small gem close and she looked mortified and disgusted.

Lapis giggled when Peri pushed away and hid behind Jasper.

"So, now that I'm feeling better, it's about time that I move back home, to my house in town. I can't have me messing up more magic stuff." Doug smiled. Connie ran up and hugged her father. "Just in case you have trouble again…"  
Doug handed her a roll of duct tape.

* * *

"Good night Dad, I loveyou…" Connie yawned into her cellphone. She heard her father laugh, "Night, pumpkin." 


	28. Space Race

The Temps came to the Galaxy Warp and Connie gasped in wonder.

Jasper leapt onto a broken pad. "Inactive."

"Inactive." Lapis called, flying to a broken warp pad.

"Inactive." Peridot grumbled.

With each one, Connie slapped a sign that said 'inactive' on them onto the warp.

"Looks like they're all inactive, as always." Jasper said.

"It doesn't hurt to check." Lapis gave a weak smile.

"I've never seen so many warp pads before!" Connie laughed. "I hope I have enough of these signs I made... Where do all these warp pads go, anyway?"

"Connie, these warp pads were used to travel off-planet. They were our connection to the Gem Homeworld and to Gem-controlled planets all over the universe." Peridot smiled wistfully.

"You mean we could go anywhere we want in outer space?" Connie gasped.

"Well… All the warp pads are down." Lapis sighed. "So we can't."

"You can fly there." Peridot grumbled.

"But I choose not to." Lapis growled.

"Ugh, whatever! I'll always have my memories of other worlds. But now I'm here... on Earth…" Her face fell, "Forever."

"With me?" Connie asked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Hm, with you." Peridot weakly smiled. "I wish… I wish you could see it."

* * *

Connie was sitting on a lounge chair, reading when she turned to her father. "Dad, did you know the gems used to travel all throughout space?"

"Wouldn't surprise me." Doug said, flipping through files in his car.

"I think Peri wants misses going out there…" Connie sighed. She then sat up. "We should build a spaceship."

"That might be a little out of my skill level…" Doug chuckled.

"No, no, I think you know what I mean." Connie smiled.

* * *

Connie covered Peridot's eyes then relased them.

"Tada!" Connie and Doug cried.

Peridot frowned. "What am I looking at?"

"A spaceship!" Connie yelled, showing of the very tiny model she and her father made. "It works like a real one!"

"So that's…"

"A spaceship!"

"A spaceship…"

* * *

Connie put the little rocket on the ground and fired up the remote. "You ready?"

"Ready." Doug smiled, giving her a thumbs up, "But remember, if that thing catches fire, which I think we both know it will, remember there is no shame in bailing and running away."

"Got it!"

Peridot meanwhile gave a groan in annoyance. "I would never bail on anything."

"Ready for takeoff in 3,2,1!" Connie cried. The rocket blasted off and they watched the control break in Connie's hand and the thing nose dive, catching fire.

"NO SHAME!" Connie screamed, grabbing her friends and running from the fire.

* * *

"It was nice of Lapis to stop that brief fire." Connie smiled.

"Okay, can we build a real spaceship now?" Peridot moaned, erasing the team's plan and making a new one, "For a real one, not toy-"

"We worked for hours on that model-" Connie started.

"Hush. You need smooth, curving surfaces. Otherwise, you're never gonna get enough speed to break Earth's gravitational pull. Probably swept-back wings for supersonic flight, airtight cockpit with ejector seat, and we'll need some serious  
engines, or maybe rockets would be better…"

"Rockets?" Connie gasped.

"Whoa, whoa. Hold on a sec. We're not actually talking about building something like this, right?" Doug asked. Connie looked concerned.

Peridot gave a chuckle. "What?! Of course not! That would be ridiculous. Then again, my intelligence combined with these spare parts here… Ha, ha! Several mortals, a monkey, and a dog did make it into space. I don't know why I've never  
even thought of it before. This could actually work."

Connie bit her lip. "But-"

"I hear what you're saying, and I agree— it would be incredibly dangerous; a fool's errand… But I'm not a fool! And Connie's not a fool! And Doug…"

Doug smiled proudly.

"I'm… still not sure about Doug!" Peridot said. "But, I'd be able to show Connie the wonders of the … maybe just for a second, from a distance, I could see what's been going on without me…"

* * *

Connie watched Peridot fly through the air on a test and she landed. Peridot's seat sprung out and she flipped before landing. The thing fell apart behind her.

"Was that… supposed to happen?" Connie asked.

"Ha! Yes! I am brave enough to concur this engine test!" Peridot cried.

"Wait… are there more tests?" Doug gasped.

"Yes."

"You're serious?!" Connie cried.

"What do you think?" Peridot grinned. "We're also going to need a space suit for you so you doesn't freeze or explode."

"Explode?!" Connie gasped.

"Peridot, you are not taking Connie into space!" Doug cried.

"Um, that's the plan…"

"Well, I won't allow it! Connie, you're grounded!"

Connie gasped in horror. "AGAIN?!"

"Oh, no, sweetie, I mean, you can't go into space."

"Oh, okay." Connie whispered.

"CLOD." Peridot hissed, shoving past Doug.

* * *

That night, Connie was asleep in the back of her father's car, he had decided to stay out at the barn just in case, when there was a tapping on the window. Connie whimpered slightly and awoke. She opened the car door to see Peridot who shushed  
her gasp immediately. "Come on!"

She lead Connie to the barn and the girl squealed at a giant spaceship. "How did you do that?"

"It doesn't matter, Connie, we're taking it for a test run." Peridot smiled.

"But Dad said-" Connie gasped.

"Your father won't even notice you're gone." Peridot smirked, a spacesuit appearing on her.

* * *

Doug awoke at the sound of rumbling and saw the ship lift into the air.

"You can see the temple from here!" Connie gasped.

Suddenly, the walkie talkie activated and Doug's voice came over, "Peridot, I will have you arrested for kidnapping a child!"

"I don't care! She'll be back in 50 years!"

"50 years?!" Connie cried.

"I'll be dead in 50 years!" Doug gasped. "Fine, I won't arrest you, just bring her back!"

"NEVER!" Peridot yelled. She turned off the radio.

"Peri!" Connie gasped. "Take me home! I'm scared!"

"No need! We're so close, Connie!" Peridot cried.

Connie saw a piece of the ship fly off. "Peridot!"

"We're going to make it!" Peridot growled. "I'm going to show you!"

The ship was falling apart and a alarm started to blare. Connie saw the emergency hatch and pulled. The top came off.

"Connie, you clod! Let go of me!" Peridot snarled, trying to shove her away.

"Peridot! Listen to me! We are not going to make it!" Connie sobbed, hugging her.

"I CAN'T BAIL!" Peridot yelled.

"I know you miss space, and I know you worked hard, but sometimes... you just gotta know when to bail!" Connie screeched.

Peridot hesitated, tears coming, but pulled the lever.

They were floating to the ground a few minutes later after the ship exploded.

Peridot slowly released Connie from a tight hug. "I'm so sorry… You were nearly killed."

"I'm used to it." Connie smiled weakly. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you go to space. We'll get there someday, I promise…"

"You know, I really do like it on Earth, I'm happy to stay." Peridot smiled, brushing Connie's hair away.

"With me?" Connie asked.

"Of course. With you." 


	29. The Rebels

Connie and Lapis laughed as they swam in her room. Connie got out and called, "Can you make me a diving board?"

"Sure." Lapis grinned. The water lifted the girl up by her waist and made a diving board. She looked around at the puddles. "Which should I do?"

"Hm… well, you can do this one, or this one.."

Connie turned to one that seemed to be calling to her and leapt off. "I'm going in this one!"

"No!" Lapis cried.

Connie opened her eyes to see Jasper walking around the burning room. She gave a tiny cry but before Jasper could turn and see her, Lapis pulled her up.

"Let's do something less dangerous…" Lapis muttered. "Oh! I can teach you to breathe underwater! You're half-gem, gems can breathe underwater… let's see if it works!"

* * *

"You ready?" Lapis asked underwater. Connie nodded, a air bubble around her.

Lapis slowly collapsed the bubble and Connie attempted to breath. She choked quickly and Lapis gasped. She flung her hand up and a platform of water slammed beneth Connie. It went into the air so high that Connie went higher than the platform.

Once she had hacked out water, she screamed in horror but then felt a strong pair of arms wrap around her. Lapis hugged her and started to fly down when they came across Peridot's room, the metal platform. Peridot was holding a yellow bubble full  
/of gem shards.

"What… That's Yellow's!" Lapis gasped in horror. "She can't touch those!"

"That's my mom's?"

Lapis landed immediately and she ran to Peridot. "What are you doing?!"

"Ghaa! Lazuli!" Peridot gasped, nearly dropping it. "I... just wanted to see how the shards are reacting to Yellow's bubble. Besides, it's my stuff!"

"No, you stole it! Jasper will be furious with you!" Lapis cried, attempting to snatch the bubble away.

Lapis tackled Peridot to the ground and Connie grabbed the bubble before it could roll off. "Guys! Calm down!"

"Connie, give me that bubble!" Peridot snarled.

"No, give it to me!" Lapis pleaded.

The gems both reached for it and the bubble popped. Connie held the gem shards but they suddenly formed into disembodied arms. She cried out in horror and dropped them. The three watched them scatter throughout the temple.

"Oh no! We gotta get Jasper!" Connie gasped.

"No! No, no! We just freed those mindless gem shards! They're going to get everywhere!" Lapis cried.

Peridot hyperventilated while Lapis said, "Jasper will shatter us when she finds out!"

"She's not going to find out…" Peridot whispered. "We're going to catch them, all of them."

"You're right. Every single one must get back in a bubble and back in the basement!" Lapis agreed.

"Like it never happened."

"Then we tell Jasper," Connie asked.

"NO!" The others cried.

"This has to be our secret! We're rebels keeping it!" Peridot hissed.

"Rebels? Together? I've never been a rebel! We should have a name like… The Temp Rebellion! So perfect!"

"Er, maybe just Rebels?"Lapis suggested, giving a tiny frown at the girl's wording.

"Okay! The Rebels need business cards! Here." Connie gave them each a bookmark.

"Connie, you love your bookmarks, why give them to us?" Peridot asked.

"Sacrifices must be made." Connie whispered.

* * *

Togther, the rebels defeated the gem shards and bubbled each and every one.

"Okay…" Peridot whispered, showing her shards.

"This look like all of them…" Lapis smiled.

"Horray! Rebels forever!" Connie cried.

"I hope we didn't miss any." Peridot said, gathering up the shards.

"I hope that too." Lapis agreed.

"Now, we just need to seal this up in a Yellow Diamond bubble, this is all you Connie." Peridot gave her the shards. Connie grinned and made the bubble.

* * *

Connie stuck her head in the Burning Room and was about to place the bubble when she saw Jasper narrow her eyebrows. "Who's there?" She growled.

Connie kicked her legs until Peri and Lapis pulled her up. "J-Jasper!"

"Did she see you?!" Lapis gasped.

"I… don't think so." Connie whispered.

"Then get back in there!" Peridot shoved her under and she dropped the bubble. They pulled her out and the friends high-fived.

"It's over." Peridot sighed, wiping sweat from her brow.

"We're safe." Lapis whispered.

"What's next?" Connie grinned.

"There is nothing next." Lapis said.

"We'll pretend this never happened." Peridot added.

"But… what about the Rebels?"

* * *

"What will it be, Connie?" Mr. Fryman asked.

"I'll have… the bits." Connie sighed, wearing a black bandanna around her neck. She took out her purse and searched for her wallet but her hand brushed against her bookmark. "We had so much fun, sir…"

"Uh, who did?" Mr. Fryman asked.

"I can't tell you!" Connie cried, slamming her fist down. "How come the best things in life are things you can't tell other people because you'd get in big trouble?"

"Connie, are you in a gang?"

"Me?! In a gang?!" Connie gasped. "I was in a rebellion! And maybe I will be again!"

* * *

"I know you must be wondering why I brought you all here…" Connie whispered. "It's 'cause I'm getting the team back together! So, here's the deal," She gave a picture of the black bandanna she had been wearing to Lapis.

"I left my special bandanna at the Bookstore,"

"When did you wear this?" Lapis asked.

"it's closed now," Connie continued. "So the mission is, we break in and get it back. And, tada! The Rebels are back on top!"

"Connie, that's over." Lapis said.

"What are we talking about?" Peridot asked, laughing nervously.

"But, we had so much fun together! Getting along, sneaking around—" Connie whispered.

"That wasn't fun!" Peridot growled. "That was about fixing our terrible mistake."

"Your terrible mistake." Lapis growled. "You shouldn't have had that bubble in the first place."

"It never would have popped if you hadn't touched my stuff!"

"Guys!" Connie cried.

"Grr, you can have all the stuff you want, because I never want to be on a team with you again!" Lapis cried. She took out the bookmark and thrust it to Connie.

"Good! I don't want to be on a team with you, either!" Peridot huffed, giving her bookmark back.

"Fine!" Lapis yelled.

"Fine!" Peridot snapped.

* * *

Connie sat at a table in the bookstore. Jasper walked up and frowned. "Why a bookstore of all places?"

"I have something I want to tell you." Connie sighed.

"A bookmark?"

"No! I... need to come clean. Peri and Lapis popped a bubble. We made a rebellion to cover it up because they didn't want you to know…"

"And now you're trying to do the right thing." Jasper said.

"Yes…" Connie sighed. "I also want the rebellion back…"

"I see, I know how to handle things with them. We'll have to form our own rebellion to do it…"

* * *

Peridot was organizing her things when Jasper came in, holding Connie and Lapis. Jasper threw them to the ground.

"What is going on?" Lapis cried.

"Tell us…" Connie sighed.

"I know about the gem shards." Jasper growled.

"It— It was me! I'm the one who popped the bubble! All by myself." Connie cried.

"Connie…." Peridot whispered. "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!"

"If no one has anything else to say, and everyone else is innocent... Connie, I'm going to have to punish you…" Jasper said, grabbing Connie's arm. "Come on."

Suddenly, a cream orange hand thrust out and grabbed her.

"Jasper!" Lapis yelled. The gems summoned thier weapons and charged. The hand went down and another snatched her up from behind. She gave a cry. Another hand snatched up Peridot.

"Lapis, shape-shift! Get small or... something!" Peridot yelled to Lapis.

"I can't! I'm too scared!" Lapis growled.

"This is all my fault! I never should have had that bubble!" Peridot yelled.

"It wouldn't have popped if it wasn't for me!" Lapis screamed.

"We should've told Jasper! We should've told her right away! I knew the Rebels were wrong! I just— I wanted to see you guys acting like friends!" Connie cried.

Jasper suddenly leaped up from down bellow.

"Jasper?" Connie gasped. The hand released the two gems and went back to Jasper.

"So, you two can't get along unless you think I'm going to shatter you…." Jasper said. She crouched in front of Connie. "Listen, kiddo, I know you wanted to help them. You wanted to protect them, even from me… They made you feel

like you had to take their side. But there are no sides, because we're all on the same team — The Crystal Temps!" Jasper threw the bookmark right into Connie's face. "Ow."

"Sorry."

Connie dropped the bookmarks and gave a weak grin to her friends.


	30. Island Adventure

The Temps were on Mask Island. Peridot and Jasper walked out to the ocean. "Are you sure it's here?" Peridot asked.

"Are you sure you should be questioning me?" Jasper growled.

"Well, maybe it swam away." Peridot shrugged.

"It didn't, already checked. The water would have a certain feel about it." Lapis said while Connie explored behind her. "I guess we better get home."

She grabbed Connie and pulled her to the warp pad. "Come on! It's time to go."

"B-but…" Connie whispered. They arrived at the warp pad. The girl suddenly gasped and turned to Peridot, "Can I warp us back?"

Jasper smiled and said, "Sure, kiddo."

While Connie struggled to warp them back, Peridot cried, "I'm not okay with-"

They were back at the house when she said, "this…"

"I did it! I'm mastering warping!" Connie squealed, punching the air.

"I'm impressed." Peridot admitted.

"Nice one." Jasper said, ruffling Connie's hair.

"You did great!" Lapis cried, giving the girl a bear hug, scaring her at the impact. Jasper chuckled.

"Ok everyone, enough messing around! We have a misson to complete! Let's warp out." Peridot said.

"Oh! Can I warp us there?" Connie begged, with diamonds in her eyes.

"We're going to a volcano." Jasper smiled. "You'll burn to a crisp, kid."

Connie gave a sigh and then glanced up, "Can I at least tell my friends I'm mastering warping?"

"I suppose-" Lapis started, but Connie was already gone.

* * *

"I'm mastering warping!" Connie cried, slamming into the bookstore.

"Ok…" Lars sighed without enthusiasm.

Sadie was sleeping with her legs propped up on the counter. She mumbled something in her sleep.

"Let me guess, you want a book?" Lars smiled knowingly.

"Have you got anything new in Fantasy?" Connie asked.

"Hm, let me check." Lars said. He turned and tried to step over Sadie but tripped. Sadie awoke with the breath knocked out of her. "Lars! I just got to sleep! Now I'll have to start all over!"

"Well, don't sleep at the counter!" Lars groaned. "I'm trying to work!"

"Well, I'm trying to sleep while you work!" Sadie huffed.

Connie watched the two bicker and thought to herself, _Wow. These two sure fight a lot… But I just know they're perfect for each other! it's affecting their customer service!_

"You could get fired!" Lars yelled.

"Who cares?! This was supposed to be a summer job, 2 summers ago! I want somewhere new!" Sadie snapped.

"Oh! That's it!" Connie cried suddenly. "I'm mastering warping!"

"You already said that." Lars sighed.

"I know, but I could warp us to somewhere warm, and beautiful, and magical, for just the two of you!" Connie said with diamonds in her eyes.

Lars and Sadie looked at each when Connie suddenly went between them, "And by the two of you, I meant the three of us!"

* * *

"We're here!" Connie announced, leaping from the warp pad.

Lars went after her but Sadie blew a pice of hair from her face, "This is really strange! Can't we just go home?"

"Come on! Please? This'll be fun!" Connie cried.

"Come on, Sadie, let's just give it a chance!" Lars said, helping her from the warp pad.

"Ok, but if it blows, I'm going home!" Sadie huffed.

They then walked onto a beautiful beach with golden sands and sparkling waters.

"Welcome to paradise!" Connie cried.

"It's a beach…" Lars whispered.

"But it is a magical beach…" Connie sighed.

"Is that why my phone has literally no signal? Why were you even here?" Sadie asked.

"We came here to look for a dangerous gem creature, but never found it…" Connie ended in a whisper.

"That's it, I'm going home!" Sadie yelled, stomping back to the warp pad.

"Wait! Sadie!" Lars groaned, running after her.

Sadie stopped suddenly and frowned, "Where is it?"

Connie glanced over her shoulder to see the warp pad was gone, "What?!"

"It wouldn't disappear, would it?" Lars whispered.

"I… don't know." Connie sighed.

"What?!" Sadie and Lars gasped together.

"Don't worry! The Temps will come for us when they see I'm missing! Eventually…" Connie said, trying to assure them.

"Connie, how could you do this?" Sadie growled. "We're stranded!"

"Hey, this isn't the worst place to be stuck on." Lars shrugged.

"I guess." Sadie huffed. "I'm going to try and get some reception."

Connie watched her walk away and noticed three rocks shaped like pillows. "Guys, look! These look like pillows!"

"Heh, nice Connie." Lars smiled.

"My rock is too close to those other rocks." Sadie growled, moving hers farther away.

"Lars, I don't know what I'm doing wrong…" Connie sighed, getting as comfortable as she could in the sand.

"Tell me about it." Lars laughed.

"You were gonna love it here soooo much, you'd never want to leave." Connie whispered, looking at the stars.

"Don't worry, Sadie is just a tough nut. She can't keep up the shtick forever." Lars smiled.

"I could do without the audio commentary, please!" Sadie yelled from a cliff.

"Goodnight, Lars…" The girl yawned

"Night, Connie." The teen said.

* * *

The next day, Connie sat on a rock, watching Lars try to make a fire.

"Any flames?" Connie moaned.

"Nothing close to one, you?" Lard asked.

"Nope." Connie sighed. She turned over the rock she was using and gave a tiny laugh, "This rock is so cute! Everything on this island has a happy smile!"

Lars and Connie felt Sadie watching and looked at her. Sadie gave a grumble, "Ugh, no signal over here either."

"Hey! Uh, maybe you should help out! If you wanna eat!" Lars laughed nervously behind her. The teen seemed to ignore him and Lars gave a growl. He struck two rocks together.

"Lars!" Connie gasped, seeing a fire build. "We're gonna live!

"You're strong, you can catch, and I'll cook!" Lars said, displaying the fire to Sadie.

* * *

That afternoon, Sadie caught three fish, with only one try.

"Sadie, you can fish really well!" Lars gasped.

"I guess." Sadie shrugged.

"You guess?" Lars chuckled. Sadie gave a small smile and laugh. Connie couldn't help but smile.

She took her violin out, which she always seemed to have with her, no matter what. "Could this day get any better?"

" _Isn't this such a beautiful day, whoah, we're underneath a thousand fluffy clouds...Isn't it nice to find yourself somewhere different, Whoa, why don't you let yourself just be wherever you are…_ "

Over the course of many days, the trio accepted thier fates and made a hut togther. Lars grew better at cooking, and Sadie at fishing.

" _Look at this place, look at your faces. I've never seen you look like this before. Isn't it nice to find yourself somewhere different, Whoa, why don't you let yourself just be wherever you are._ " One night, Sadie even asked if she could

stay in the tent with the rest. Of course, they happily agreed. " _Look at this place, look at your faces. They're shining like a thousand shining stars! Isn't it nice to find yourself somewhere different, Whoa, why don't you let yourself just be wherever you are."_

One day, a giant fish jolted up from the ocean and tried to bite Lars! Sadie pulled and tried to get him away and Connie ran to help as well.

That night, Lars had cooked up the giant fish that Sadie had killed for him. Sadie helped him wrap up the bite with part of her shirt and Connie played her violin, singing, " _Why don't you let yourself just be somewhere different. Whoa, why don't you let yourself just be whoever you are_."

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That night, Lars was having trouble sleeping and so Sadie curled up and let him hug her. Connie was fast asleep beside her and tried to join them but Sadie pushed her away.

The next morning, Lars awoke to find Sadie gone. He glanced at Connie who was playing her violin. "Have you seen Sadie?" The girl merely shrugged.

Lars soon saw Sadie with her phone, pacing back and forth. Lars saddened and walked up.

"Dumb piece of junk! No bars. No bars! NO BARS!" Sadie sobbed. She threw her phone far away, into the ocean.

"Did that help?" Lars whispered.

"No, no it didn't." Sadie cried, slumping to the ground. She looked up with tears in her eyes. "What if… I never get home?"

"Oh! You're homesick!" Lars laughed nervously.

Sadie sadly nodded.

"It's okay! We're okay! Connie said the Temps could be coming for us any day. And, you know... until then, I got your back." Lars said, putting his arm around her and offering a fist bump.

Sadie looked at it and then at him. "Lars? Do you ever get lonely... even when you're around people?"

Lars slowly nodded.

Sadie suddenly thrust to him into a kiss. He accepted it and they seemed to melt into each other. For once, it was like they both had found true happiness…

" _Why don't you let yourself just be_ …" They slowly turned to see Connie playing her violin behind them.

"CONNIE?!" The two yelled togther.

"How long were you there?!" Sadie gasped.

"We need a private moment, please!" Lars huffed.

"S-sorry!" Connie's face turned pink. "I thought it was a good time!"

"I'm going to catch more fish." Sadie huffed, walking away.

Lars looked after her with a love-struck smile. He then came to his senses and cried, "Hey! You don't have to go! We're kinda on our own schedule here!"

Lars and Connie ran after her when they suddenly heard a rumbling. Their hut was smashed to the ground and Sadie gasped in fear. Lars wrapped his arms around her while Connie went over. She saw a bright blue gem and gently touched it. "It's

a gem?"

Suddenly, the gem rose and they heard a terrible roaring. Connie gasped and made a bubble around herself and her friends. The invisible monster smacked the group away and they landed on a lower ledge. The bubble popped.

They heard lightning crack and Connie gasped, "We gotta get out of here! Come on, guys!"

"What is that thing?!" Sadie cried.

"It must be what the gems were looking for! It never left the island at all! It's invisible!" Connie cried, a small smile on her face that said that she had figured it out.

"A big invisible thing is after us?! We're not safe! I'm scared!" Sadie sobbed. "Really scared!"

Lars heard her crying and saw Connie trying to comfort her, but to no avail.

"Follow me." The boy sighed, pulling Sadie who grabbed Connie.

Lars lead them to the place the warp pad had been and uncovered it.

"The warp pad? But that's…" Connie slowly looked at Lars with disbelief.

Sadie caught on and gasped, "You knew!" She pulled herself away from Lars.

"Guys?" Connie whispered.

"It's his fault we've been trapped here!" Sadie growled, pointing at Lars.

"I…" Connie stuttered, also feeling a bit betrayed.

"Look, I panicked!" Lars cried. "I hid the warp pad! You were just gonna leave, but I knew how much you really needed this! Why don't you ever let me help you?!"

"Help me? Are you insane?" Sadie yelled. "You trapped me on an island, so you could come on to me!"

"You kissed me on the mouth!" Lars retorted.

"No, I didn't!" Sadie huffed.

"Guys, I want to be mad too, but can we do it on the warp pad?!" Connie cried in panic, hearing the monster approach.

Lars suddenly shoved Sadie too hard and she fell off a cliff, into the mud.

"SADIE!" Lars screamed. He and Connie ran to the edge to see Sadie face down in the mud.

Suddenly, they saw the gem and it's footprints…

Sadie gasped. Lars slid down the cliff and latched onto the monster. It immediately threw him off. Lars went to hit it but it smacked him away. Connie gave a gasp and threw two sharp rocks at Lars, seeing sticks nearby.

"Lars! Use your mad cooking skills!" Connie yelled.

Lars understood and grabbed the sticks. He avoided the monster's claws and set up the sticks under the beast. He gave a yell and struck the rocks togther, lighting a fire. He rolled away as it inlarged. They heard the gem's roars of agony as

the fire ingulfed it and watched it poof.

Connie slid to them and ran to the gem. "I've got this." She whispered, a yellow bubble appearing around it… They watched it bubble away.

Lars walked right pass Sadie who tried to thank him. They all three got on the warp pad.

"Lars, you were incredible." Connie grinned, eyes sparkling.

"Yeah... that was really great, how you... uh, s-saved me…" Sadie blushed.

"Don't read into it." Lars said coldly.

"We should do this again sometime." Connie smiled, seeing the tension. Her smile faded, wondering if she had fixed, or just made their relationship worse…

They then warped home.

* * *

 **I'm sorry this is so late! I'm just going through a rough time right now, and haven't been feeling very happy or motivated to write, but I'm getting better! Also, are any of you readers artists? I'm looking for someone to make a cover art for this story! Sadly, I can't pay you, but I hope you love this story enough to just want to do it out of the goodness of your hearts! Thanks! Just pm me if you feel up to it! Also, I prefer if I can just get it off DeviantArt, for no trouble.**  
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	31. Keep Beach City Werid

It was a peaceful and beautiful day in Beach City when a screech filled the air, "Peridot!"

Peridot slammed through the door and her pole shaped into a hammer. "Who dares to hurt Connie?! Get ready to die!"

"Help me! Save me! HELP!" Connie yelled, leaping into a hug.

Suddenly, a blue and orange Connie ran around them, laughing.

"You're it!" Connie giggled, tagging Peridot.

"Connie, are you time traveling again?" Peridot huffed.

"No! It's Connie Tag!" Lapis smiled in her shapeshifted form. "The rules are when Connie tags us, we turn into Connie."

"It's the rules." Jasper smirked.

"That's… That's a stupid game." Peridot growled.

"Okay." Connie laughed.

"Sooooo, that means we're out of players. Get ready for Connie Tag Advance!" Lapis yelled, trying to tag Jasper. Jasper grabbed the woman's wrist and threw up into the air. Jasper leapt up and slammed Lapis down to ground. "TAG!"

"Ha, she is pathetic." Jasper chuckled.

* * *

That day, Connie skipped on the beach. _"I guess I can't win every game of Connie Tag, even though it's my name, it's not my game_!" She sang.

"STOP!" A voice yelled.

Connie nearly fell over and peered over a rock. She saw a teenager that she thought she recognized. "Hi? You're Ronaldo, aren't you?"

"This is a restricted zone!" The teen huffed, ignoring her question. "Only those with special clearance may enter!"

"May, I have special clearance?" Connie peeped.

"Hm…" Ronaldo looked at her up and down. "granted."

Connie looked at the plastic on her hands then saw Ronaldo rummaging through his bag.

"Now that you're properly suited, let's investigate!" The teen said, giving her binoculars. "See those holes? Their shape and pattern is repeated over and over. Some might say it's a coincidence. I say there's something... more."

"More than one coincidence?" Connie gasped.

"You'd already be in the know if you followed my blog, "Keep Beach City Weird" Ronaldo showed her his phone. "I document all the weird thing that happen in Beach City! You can't always trust facts and books. I'm out here hunting the TRUTH!"  
Connie frowned. "I… trust books and facts."

"Oh, there you are!" They turned to see Connie's friend, Peedee, also Ronaldo's brother. "Dad wants you back at the shop! You're missing out on valuable frying time!"

"It's WEIRD time, Peedee! I'm doing big stuff! COVER for me!" Ronaldo yelled. Connie watched Peedee walk away saying, "Fine. But this is the last time, or I'm telling Dad."

Ronaldo turned to his apprentice and smiled, "You ready to get your hands really dirty?" Connie nodded, taking the bags off her hands. "Follow me."

"Coming!" Connie laughed.

* * *

"I can't wait to find some magic stuff! It's like we're heros in some kind of book!" Connie cried, skipping beside Ronaldo.

"Shh! I'm picking up a quantum flux on the weirdometer. There." Connie looked at some jagged red rocks and gasped.

"Did they fall from the sky?" Connie asked.

"My research suggests, they grew up from the ground." Ronaldo said.

* * *

Later, Connie ran to a garbage can outside the bookstore. "Ronaldo! Look at this!" She cried. The can was covered in yellow flowers that seemed familiar.

"According to an online encyclopedia in which I am a user, slash editor of, this species isn't indigenous to this region... or this dimension!" Connie thought she might've misheard the teen but he seemed to make his own echos after the  
last word.

"We live in a strange world, Connie." Ronaldo said at Beach City Fries. "Stranger than most know, stranger than they care to know. Take my brother for instance," Connie glanced at Peedee to see him working. "He's always  
getting on my case, telling me to work more. He'll never understand, but Connie, I can tell you're like me." Connie gave a tiny smile at his words.

Ronaldo smirked and got up. He walked away and whispered, "You're someone I can trust…." Connie felt chills go down her spine.

* * *

"You're ready for what I have found," Ronaldo said, opening the door to the top of the lighthouse. "The cause of Beach City's paranormal activity."

"Wait, what? You have a cause for this?" Connie asked.

"Welcome to my office, go that way." Ronaldo pointed to a board. Connie saw pictures and newspaper clippings. "Welcome... to the truth!"

Connie saw a sign that said in large letters, Snake People.

"...Snake… People?" Connie whispered.

"Snake People, or "sneople", control our government at the highest levels! Look!" Ronaldo thrust a dollar in her face, which looked very doubtful.

"Are you… certain?" Connie gasped. "I mean, I've read many books and facts, and…"

"Hush! You know how I feel about books!" Ronaldo yelled. "The snake represents their hold on our country. The diamond represents their underground mines, or their sharp teeth... the details aren't important. They pit us mammals against  
each other with elections, sports, and anime message boards. We spend so much time fighting over "dubs" or "subs" that we miss the big picture!"

"And… what is that?" Connie asked.

"That the world is under their control." Ronaldo whispered.

* * *

Connie entered the house. "Guys? My friend thinks Snake People are real…"

Peridot and Lapis stared at her for a moment.

"Snake people?" Lapis laughed.

"He thinks these are clues left behind by them, but I feel like I recognize these from somewhere…" Connie whispered, showing the pictures she had taken on her phone.

"That must be from when we fought those drill parasites on the beach, those clods that you and Steven found?" Peridot asked.

"Oh. Well, what about this? I remember this from somewhere too." Connie said, swiping to the picture of the rocks.

"That looks like pieces of that Red Eye we destroyed." Lapis said.

"And these?"

"Oh! Those are flowers from Yellow's moss!" Peridot squealed. She and Lapis smiled softly.

"Is all the weird stuff that happens in Beach City because of us?" Connie asked. "I didn't want to think that was true."

"Connie, how can we not be making all of this?" Peridot chuckled.

"I need some air." Connie sighed, going outside.

The girl soon saw Ronaldo on the beach. She ran over and whispered, "Ronaldo?"

"Did you see this crater? I think the snake people might have left it as a sign." Ronaldo said

"About that…" Connie bit her lip.

"Yes, Connie?" Ronaldo asked, his eyes shining.

"Are you sure about snake people?"

"Connie… are you having doubts?" Ronaldo gasped.

"Not just doubts." Connie sighed. "I found out that those weird holes in the cliff were just something me and the Temps did."

"Well, okay, but those red rocks…"

"That was us…"

"But, the flowers…"

"Us too."

"But, but the truth!" Ronoldo cried.

"Maybe the truth just isn't what you thought it was." Connie sighed.

"Sure it is! Don't get hung up on these minor facts. Truth is about more than that, truth is a feeling in your gut that you know is true! Truth is searching for anything that proves you're right no matter how small, and holding on to that,  
no matter what." Ronaldo whispered.

"That kinda sounds like the opposite of truth." Connie muttered.

"Look! The proof! This cast will show the true face of this conspiracy." Ronaldo said, picking up a cast. It looked just like Connie.

"That's probably from Connie Tag." Connie explained.

"What?!" Ronaldo gasped.

"It's a game where, when I tag one of the Temps, they-"

Ronaldo stopped her. "I'm really not at the center of anything... I'm nothing." Connie watched him walk away, the cast crumbling…

* * *

Later that day, Connie sat with her computer, seeing Ronaldo's blog was shutting down.

"You're upset about something?" Peridot asked.

"Peri, I think I broke Ronaldo's heart." Connie sighed.

"How did you break it?! Where's his body?!" Peridot screeched.

"I mean, he doesn't believe anymore!"

"Well, let me tell you something. Humans just lead short, boring, insignificant lives, so they make up stories to feel like they're a part of something bigger. They want to blame all the world's problems on some single enemy they can fight,  
instead of a complex network of interrelated forces beyond anyone's control." Peridot smiled.

"It's sad." Lapis said behind her.

"Don't feel bad about it, okay? It's not like he was ever going to be right." The green gem chuckled, leaving to work on her gadgets while Lapis cleaned the dishes. Connie looked at a coin and saw a coiled snake. She immediately got up  
and walked to the door.

"Connie, where are you going?" Lapis asked.

"I'm going to fix Ronaldo!"

* * *

At the fry shop, Peedee was peeling potatos in the back and saw Ronaldo taking out the trash.

"Yo, Ronaldo!" His brother remained silent. "Ehhh, so... see anything weird lately?"

"No, everything's... normal." Ronaldo sighed. They heard a noise and turned.

Connie had disguised herself as a snake person. "Um… roar! Snake people are real, and we're puppeting the government!"

Peedee gave a squeal of fear but Ronaldo laughed hysterically. He grabbed a potato, and before Connie could flee, knocked her out.

* * *

Connie gave a groan as she awoke, seeing she was tied to a chair and duct tape was put on her mouth.

"Well, well, well, looks like some snake's awake!" Ronaldo chuckled. He went up and shone a flashlight in her eyes, examining them. "Wave forms seem typical for a twelfth dimensional being of this size. Arms appear to be, vestigial."

Connie saw Peedee cowering behind his brother.

"U-uh, Ronaldo? Is that, uh, one of the monster people you've been hunting?" He squeaked.

"No no, not "monster" Peedee, snerson. It's very scientific! But still, better safe than sorry." The teen gave him a potato.

"What's this for?" Peedee asked.

"For me! In case the amphibanoids turn my body into a host vessel!"

"No!" The boy sobbed, dropping the potato.

"Peedee, Peedee, Peedee. You gotta look at the big picture here! Something important is finally happening to me!" The teen cried to his brother while Connie struggled behind him.

Suddenly, the exterior wall smashed open and the Crystal Temps were there, fully armed.

"You…." Jasper hissed. Lapis grabbed her before she could do anything rash.

"We know you have our Connie!" Peridot yelled. Lapis grabbed her as well.

"Give her back _now_ before I make you." Lapis growled, venom in her voice.

"You, snake people…" Ronaldo retorted. "Hiding like cowards in your false humanoid exteriors! Connie's got nothing to do with this, it's me you want!" He opened his shirt to reveal armor. Lapis was quick to hit him with a slap  
of water.

He fell back in pain but was quick to get up. He attempted to knock over Peridot, but she quickly slid under him and pounced on top of him.

"YOU SNONSTER!" He yelled. Jasper put Peridot aside and lifted Ronaldo up. She punched him into the wall.

They didn't notice Connie still struggling. She wiggled herself free and was in only the pants and her green undershirt.

"Connie?!" Peedee gasped as she ran past him.

"Okay, okay. You've forced me to use my ultimate weapon! Stand back! Psychic Ghost Powers, Activate!" Rondo yelled. He started to chant gibberish and the gems readied their weapons. Connie suddenly slid in front of him.

"Everybody stop! I'm okay!" Connie cried.

"Nice pants, kiddo." Jasper smirked while Lapis held back a laugh.

"Connie, your legs! When did they get to you?" Ronaldo gasped.

"Ronaldo! It's not real!" Connie cried, throwing down the costume. "It was just me, again."

"That, makes no sense…" Ronaldo whispered, looking at the costume.

"I just wanted to inspire Ronaldo to be weird again." Connie sighed to the gems.

"No! It— It just isn't that simple! There's got to be more to it than just, you." Connie and the rest of the Temps looked away in embarrassment.

"But there is more!" Peedee suddenly said, grabbing up papers. "Connie is just uh... uh... a small piece of the puzzle! Look at this! I think its gotta be uh, level 8 beings pulling the strings."

Connie watched Ronaldo take the paper.

"Get real, Peedee." The boy looked heartbroken when suddenly, Ronaldo contuied to talk. "Level 8 beings are a worker society incapable of such organization...whoa, wait a minute!" He gasped, dropping the papers. "How did  
I never see this before?" He whispered. He started to crawl on the ground, piecing it all together. "I know what the diamond means... Polymorphic sentient rocks!"

While laughing, he didn't see Connie and Peedee gently close the door.

"Are you sure he'll be better like that?" The girl whispered.

"Yeah, he's happy, ya know?" Peedee smiled.

Connie nodded.

The Temps exited with Connie on Lapis's shoulders, flying alongside everyone. Ronaldo suddenly came out to the balcony.

"They're here to hollow out the Earth! It's part of the Great Diamond Authority! They'll take on any form, you can read all about it... ON MY BLOOOG!" 


	32. Fusion Cuisine

Together, Connie and Steven watched a show called Under The Knife.

"Doctor, it's my daughter. There was an accident. I -" A man said.

"I know what we have to do. Nurse!" The doctor called.

"Yes, doctor?" The nurse asked.

"Prep the patient for emergency surgery. We're gonna go... under the knife."

The kids watched the show's theme come on and Steven cried out, "This show is the best! Thanks for letting me watch it here, Connie."

Connie nodded happily, "How come you can't watch the show at home?"

"We live in a van, Dad says we can't afford all the channels…" Steven sighed.

Connie felt awkward when Steven's phone rang. "That's probably my dad."

The boy picked it up and nodded. He accepted the call. "Hey Dad! … Yep… Yeah." He glanced at Connie. "I'm at Connie's house. Yep. We're just hanging out!"

His face suddenly turned sad. "Connie's mom? You already know her dad- Dad, I'm not misbehaving, you don't need to check! ...Okay, hold on."

He glanced at Connie who looked worried. "This is going to be hard since my mother gave up her physical form to make me."

"I can't tell him that!" Steven cried. They ran down the steps and saw Jasper on the couch.

"Jasper! Quick, you have to pretend to be my mom to Steven's dad!" Connie cried, shoving the phone to her. Jasper took it and coughed.

"Um… This… is Mom Universe…. Yeah. Welp, the kids are wrestling, throwing some good- Whoa! That's a great uppercut! … oh, oh no, they're bleeding… they're dead. Don't call again." Jasper then gave the phone back to Connie who looked mortified.

"I'm pretty great under pressure, aren't I?" Jasper smirked. She noticed their faces and frowned, "I did something wrong..."

* * *

"What do you mean, your dad won't let you come over? It's the midseason pre-finale of "Under the Knife"!" Connie moaned.

"Connie, my dad is really upset. He said won't let me see you again until he sees both your parents and they tell him what was going on yesterday!" Steven cried.

Connie stopped organizing her books in her confusion, "But that's impossible!"

"I know, but he wants both of our families to go out together for dinner." Steven sighed.

"It sounds so... grown up. I wonder if that fancy restaurant down the street will take reservations for-" Connie counted in her fingers. "Peridot, Jasper, Dad, Lapis—all seven of us."

"Whoa, Connie! You can't bring all of your moms!" Steven gasped.

"Why not?"

"Because I told my dad you have a Mom and and Dad, not three moms!" Steven protested.

"But none of that is true." Connie frowned. "You never told your dad about the Crystal Temps?"

"No, and I'm sorry, but it has to stay that way." Steven sighed. "If he find out I lied to him, he'll never let me hang out with you again."

* * *

That night, Doug put on a sweater and Connie paced in front of the gems.

"How am I supposed to choose just one of you to bring to dinner? You're all so... cool!" Connie moaned.

"I don't handle conversations well." Lapis groaned.

"I could talk all day if I wanted to!" Peridot cried.

"Okay, okay, okay. Let's focus. Which of you would make the best mom?" Connie asked, pacing back and forth. "Jasper, you keep us safe by scaring off the bad guys, just like a mom would… But you're a little intimidating."

"Just how I like it." Jasper smirked.

Connie walked down the line. "Peridot, you're a really smart mo-"

"Yes! And I shall enlighten Greg and Steven on why I, the great Peridot, am!" Peridot cried.

"Moving on…" Connie sighed. "Lapis! You're always worried about me, you teach me lots of stuff, you're have your sweet and sassy sides, and you don't like to talk about yourself!"

"But-" Lapis started and glanced at Peridot.

"But… you get nervous when talking to other people besides us." Connie sighed in defeat. She walked over to her dad. "Man, why did Steven have to say I have one mother instead of zero... or three?"

"We'll figure this thing out, pumpkin. We just have to put our heads together." Doug smiled.

Connie suddenly gasped. "Why didn't I think of this before? It's so obvious!" She ran to the Crystal Temps. "You can all come to dinner—all three of you, fused into one!"

"What?!" Peridot gasped.

"No!" Lapis cried. "Connie, you know I… we only fuse in deadly situations!"

"But you and Jasper would have Peridot this time!" Connie insisted. Lapis stuttered but failed to argue. She remembered that it did go smoothly with Peridot… and Jasper still cared for her safety and feelings when they fused. "It'd  
be like—like I'm actually bringing my whole family!" Connie whispered.

"This is… CRAZY." Peridot cried.

"Fusion is serious magic, not a trick for dinner parties." Jasper whispered, also in a memory of Malachite and how she almost killed Peridot and Connie last time.

"I know." Connie sighed. "Then I guess this is it. I'll never get to see Steven again. I'm never going to find a best friend like him… ever again."

"We have no choice." Jasper groaned.

* * *

At Fish Stew Pizza, Greg and Steven sat outside, waiting.

"I don't want to say they might not be coming, but we've been waiting for nearly twenty minutes, stuball!" Greg sighed.

There was suddenly a rumbling and seagulls cawing. They then saw a giant woman with medium length light violet hair and indigo skin. She wore green, blue, and orange armor that was sleeveless and had stars on the knees, she had six arms and  
had three pairs of eyes, one pair orange, one pair black, and one pair sea blue.

"Whoa." Greg and Steven whispered.

"Hi Steven! Hi Greg!" Connie cried, waving from the fusion's shoulder.

The woman lowered Connie and Doug.

"Thanks… darling?" Doug whispered.

"You're welcome… Doug." The fusion grunted.

"Hey, Greg, um nice to see you." Doug smiled. "This…. is my wife, Apatite."

"Hello…" Apatite struggled out.

* * *

Later during dinner, Apatite ate nearly all of the breadsticks before the pizza came out.

"Wow, I hope this place has unlimited breadsticks…" Greg whispered to his son.

Steven slowly nodded.

"So, tell me—how did you two meet?" Greg laughed.

"How did we meet? Uh…" Doug looked at Connie for help.

Steven mouthed something to her and she slowly said it out loud.

"They met… on a rollercoaster…" Connie whispered. "She was too tall to ride?"

"Yeah!" Doug laughed nervously. "I remember it like it was yesterday. Right, honey?" He touched the woman's leg and whispered, "Sorry."

Three of the woman's hand slammed Doug's face into the table. "Have some more breadsticks, dear."

"So, uh, I know what you do for a living, Doug," Greg smiled. "But what do you do, Apatite?"

Once again, Connie read off Steven's words, "My mom works on an apple farm! She uses all her arms to pick apples out of…" Connie slowly narrowed her eyes. "W-what are you saying?" She hissed.

"What was that?" Greg asked.

"Connie, help me find the restroom!" Steven suddenly cried.

* * *

"I'm sorry, but what is this… magic giant woman you brought?" Steven asked.

"It—it's my family. It's all of the Gems, fused together into one." Connie whispered. She then saw his arm was still in a cast.

"Steven… Your arm." Connie whispered.

"What about it?"

"I healed it, you don't need that cast anymore… You said you didn't care what you told your dad." Connie frowned.

"I… um…" Steven stuttered.

"All that stuff you told your dad about my family—you're just ashamed of me!" Connie cried, tears welled in her eyes.

"Connie…" Steven started. "It's not like that!"

"Whatever, let's just get the night over with!" Connie growled.

* * *

When the pizza came out, Steven was talking to Apatite.

"Connie was telling me that her mom's apple farm isn't too far away, isn't that cool?" Steven asked his dad.

"Yeah… totally true." Connie sighed.

"So, what rollercoaster were you two going on when you met?" Greg asked.

Apatite stuttered, when suddenly, she seemed to be feuding with herself.

"What are you doing?!" Apatite and Lapis's voice cried.

"I'm thinking of what to say, clod, quiet! Don't embarrass me!" Peridot said from the fusion. Another hand slapped her.

"Knock it off!" Jasper growled.

"Stop! You don't have to answer!" Connie suddenly yelled.

The fusion looked at her and started to moan. Her face cracked apart, making everyone gasp.

Apatite got up and unfused.

"Connie, thank you, thank you!" Lapis cried. "I had no idea what to say!"

"I did!" Peridot cried.

"It doesn't matter what happened." Jasper growled, picking them both up by the wrists. "We're doing this for Connie!" She threw them to the ground.

"What is going on here?! Who are they?!"Greg gasped. "Steven, d-did you see what that woman did?!" He cried, pointing to Jasper who looked ashamed. "I can't put you in danger with those… people! I never thought you would  
keep something like this from me!"

Steven had tears in his eyes and he ran off. Connie gasped and ran after him.

* * *

A few minutes later, Connie found Steven at a bus stop.

"Connie, I'm so sorry. It's not that I'm ashamed of you. I was so worried that my dad would think all this magic stuff was too dangerous…. Connie, my dad and I have been closer than anything since the moment I was born… What if this breaks  
that? What if he doesn't let me hang out with you anymore?" He asked. Connie felt hopeless and shook her head.

"I-I'm sorry I messed everything up. I wish there was a way we could just... hang out without having to worry about stuff." Connie sighed.

"Connie, let's just hop on a bus and live somewhere else without telling anyone!" Steven gasped.

"That's a great idea!" Connie cried.

Perfectly to their plan, a bus stopped right in front of them. They got in and ran to the back.

"Where's this bus taking us?" Steven asked.

"Wherever we end up. We'll find a way to survive. I've been reading about sustainable living." Connie smiled.

"Maybe it'll take us to a real apple farm!" Steven gasped.

"What's up with you and apples today?" Connie giggled. They suddenly heard a thumping and turned around.

"CONNIE!" Apatite yelled, running after them.

The kids screamed in horror and the fusion picked up the bus.

"You two, come out of that bus this instant!" Apatite growled.

"Okay! Just put the bus down first!" Connie cried.

Steven was getting talked to by Greg. "Stuball, are you nuts?!-"

"What were you thinking, running off with Steven like that? You could have gotten yourselves hurt!" Peridot suddenly cried.

"Or mangled in traffic!" Jasper muttered.

"Or thrown in prison!" Lapis sputtered.

"Connie, you are in very big trouble, and we have no choice but to punish you." Peridot growled.

"But-"

"No dinner for 1,000 years." Jasper said.

"What?!" Connie gasped.

"Whoa, loosen up, kiddo, we would never starve you, that was a joke," Jasper laughed. "but you will lose your book privileges... for 1,000 years."

"No! How can you do this to me?!" Connie sobbed.

"Because we love you, Connie." Doug sighed.

Connie gave a groan.

"Wow, nice joke there!" Greg laughed.

"All comedy is derived from fear, buddy." Jasper said.

"I did not know what to make of the two of—oh, uh—four of you, but I see that you are responsible parents—uh, caregivers? Guardians." Greg smiled

"So, I can still hang out with Connie?" Steven asked.

"Of course you can, stuball." Greg chuckled.

Steven ran and hugged Connie who blushed. Doug suddenly walked up and separated them. "Not on _my_ watch." 


	33. Jaspers Universe

In the Beach House, Jasper warped in with a gem bubbled. She looked around exspecting to see Connie waiting as she always did. "Hey, where's my kiddo?"

Jasper turned to the door at no sound but then heard a giggle. She smiled and turned. She walked near the door, not seeing Connie hidden in the rafters.

"Connie. I know you're here." Jasper chuckled. "Come on out. You know I can sense you."

"Connie Tsunami!" Connie yelled, leaping onto Jasper's head.

"I got you!" Connie cried.

"Yep." Jasper laughed. "You got me."

"And now, you're blind." Connie grinned, covering her eyes.

"Oh no, tiny hands?! Whatever shall I do?" Jasper laughed. She grabbed Connie and put her down.

Connie watched the bubbled gem go past her and gasped, "What did you do today?!"

"Tell me what you think I did." Jasper grinned.

Connie smiled with diamonds in her eyes.

In her mind, Connie conducted a story and it was themed after a comic book she had read once.

* * *

Jasper warped into the scene. The gem walked, not seeing the cloaked figure in the trees. She then came across a bomb. She gasped in shock and leapt away into a tree. Suddenly, three more bombs were dropped. She jumped to the ground and felt someone  
/watching her. She turned to see the hooded figure. "You! Reveal yourself!" She growled.

The figure threw another bomb but Jasper made her war helmet and blocked it. Jasper ran over and grabbed the cloaked figure. She unhooded it and a frog looked back at her. "Hopper the morning to you, Jasper. Nothing like some morning training

to get the blood pumping. Am I right?"

Jasper smiled. "Hopper. Nice to see you too." She dropped the frog.

"By the way, have you seen Hoppy? She was hoppin' excited to train with us." The little frog said. Jasper suddenly heard a blade and turned. She made her helmet and the two blades resonated. A rabbit fell to the ground.

"Jasper." The rabbit said.

"Hoppy." Jasper smirked.

Hopper gasped, reading her tablet-like device. "Wow Garnet, I can tell you've been training. Your power levels are hoppin' high!"

"Yes Hopper, but they could always be higher. We should train more. I nearly had the jump on you that time." Hoppy frowned.

The frog giggled softly.

"We can train some other time, Hoppy. Right now, there's a gem artifact to recover." Jasper smiled.

"I wonder what it is this time. Maybe a magic power amulet, or a flying power carpet, or maybe an enchanted power onion!" Hopper cried, guessing.

"Ugh, I don't know what it is, but we should hurry. There's somebody at home that I need to get back to." Jasper said. She took out a small picture. She looked at it with a smile. It was a picture of her and Connie, with Connie giggling

as Jasper tickled her.

"Who's that?" Hopper asked, peeking over her shoulder.

"Just my most favorite person in the world." Jasper chuckled.

"Have you ever told her that?" Hoppy whispered.

"No, are you kidding me?" Jasper said, bluntly.

"What do you mean?" Hopper asked.

"I'm not good at expressing my feelings, it'd get too sappy." Jasper muttered.

"Will we get to meet her soon?" Hopper asked.

"Not yet. She's not ready to know I talk to animals." Jasper said, walking to the place she knew the artifact must be. Suddenly, someone landed in front of them from a tree.

Hopper hopped over and held her device over the man that fell. "His power levels are hoppin' pretty low."

"Move aside, I can revive him." Jasper grunted. She took out her gem destabilizatior that Yellow Diamond had given her in case of emergency. The thing powered up and she held it over the man. The electricity from it went into his body

and then Jasper punch him in the stomach. "Breathe, buddy!"

The man took a breath of air and awoke to see Jasper hulked over him. "Ha, ha! Thank you for saving me!" The man cried.

"Um, sure, fella. What's your name?" Jasper asked, helping him up.

"My name is Ringo. I am but a humble caretaker of the shrine atop yonder mountain." He said, pointing to a mountain in the distance.

"How did you get those wounds?" The rabbit asked. "Was it from some kind of training?"

"Well, you see. An innocent Foxman wanted to see the shrine. Such a sweet, sweet Foxman. Naturally, I obliged. Inside rested the sacred magic gem of ultimate power. It was then that the Foxman double-crossed me. He used the power of the gem

to banish me from my own shrine. Ever since then I've been searching for someone strong enough to help me." Ringo whispered.

"Ha, I'm strong." Jasper smiled. "I'll help you and get that gem back.

"Oh, you can have the gem. I just want my shrine back." The man said innocently.

"That too." Jasper grinned. Her friends behind her high fived. The gem took out the picture once again. "Don't worry, kid, I'll be home soon."

The team went to the shrine. Jasper leapt up with her friends.

"Holy hop! That mound's power is off the charts!" Hopper gasped.

"Oh, be careful Garnet. Don't hop off more than you can chew." Lapis sight

"Foxman! Give us the gem, before I make you!" Jasper growled.

"What?" The fox asked. He then saw Ringo and frowned. "You again?"

"Oh, I see what this is." The fox said, standing up. He pounded his fists togther and said, "If you want the gem, you'll have to defeat me!"

"Um, okay." Jasper shrugged. "Let's go."

Jasper gave a yell as she slammed into the foxman with her war helmet. He smirked and Jasper gave a grunt of pain as he smacked her away. She barreled into her friends and they fell right back into the forest.

"He… beat me." Jasper whispered.

"That mound!" Hopper growled.

"Well, I told you he was stro-."

"I do not lose to anyone!" Jasper growled, interrupting Ringo.

"Training time?" Hoppy giggled, leaping up.

At a waterfall, Hoppy and Hopper were mediating, not noticing Jasper had fallen asleep while sitting. What they did notice was Ringo… bathing.

"Gross! Please put on some clothes on!" Hoppy cried.

Her gasp awoke Jasper. The gem yawned then saw everyone watching.

"Ok, now that I'm rested, I can do something really cool." The gem said, standing up and cracking her knuckles. The others went in front of her and watched. The gem gave a growl as her gem glowed. Her helmet was being made, but it wasgetting so  
much bigger than it usually was! Her friends and Ringo gasped.

"Weighted helmet…" The frog and rabbit whispered.

The gem gave a grunt and slammed into a tree. It immediately fell to her might.

"She just gained ten power from that one attack!" Hopper gasped.

Jasper felt exsughsted and despite not wanting to show how it, she fell to the ground, her helmet making waves.

"Come on Jasper! Don't give in!" Hoppy cried. "You can do this! You just gotta remember what you're fighting for…"

Jasper gave a grunt, and remembered Connie. She gave a yell and lifted her head, the massive helm no match for her anymore.

Jasper started to roll into a white spikey ball that got bigger and bigger.

"Whoa!" The other gasped.

"7000. 8000. 10,000! Numbers have no meaning! THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE!" Hopper cried.

Jasper gave a yell and rolled into another tree. All the trees around it fell to the ground.

Jasper smirked looking at her work. "I'm more than ready."

"So cool!" The group cried.

And so, they traveled once again to the shrine.

"Back again, huh? Looks like you're hungry for another delicious beating." The foxman smirked.

"Actually that last one spoiled my appetite, your cooking skills are pitiful." Jasper smiled.

"How dare you!" The fox yelled. He attempted to punch her away but she thrust out her hand, blocking it. "What?! Impossible!" He gasped.

She smirked and leapt into the air. Her helmet appeared and she slammed the Foxman in the head. He fell to the ground. Jasper landed beside him.

"Now, I'm getting the gem." Jasper smirked. She started to walk away but the fox whispered, "But I'm the sworn protector of the gem…" His eyes widened. "What did that liar tell you?!"

Jasper frowned and realized Ringo was gone.

"No!" The Foxman cried and Jasper turned to see Ringo laughing.

"Oh, you thought you were so smart and powerful, but you have to have a brick for a brain to fall for that!" Ringo laughed at Jasper. "Now the sacred magic gem of ultimate power is mine!"

He laughed as he put the gem in his ring of hair. He was lifted up and bright colors surrounded him.

"What is happening right now…" Jasper whispered.

His apron switched sides and he grew larger, with huge musles. A staff appeared in his hands. "Ultimate Ringo!" He laughed.

"Curse you, Ringo. I'll make you pay for this!" The Foxman yelled.

"Too bad you didn't outfox me when you had the chance!" Ringo yelled. His staff glowed and turned the Foxman into a onion ring.

Ringo laughed while Jasper, Hoppy, and Hopper gasped.

"That's a horrible way to die!" Jasper growled, turning Ringo. "Come on, Ringo, let's go and see who's really the strongest!"

"Alrighty. The name's Ultimate Ringo." The man laughed, floating over. He suddenly used the gem to transport them to a strange place.

"Whoa. Wha- what is this place?" Hopper gasped.

"Welcome to my Ringo Zone!" The villain cried. "It is here where my powers are strongest. You wanna stop me? Go on. It will amuse me. And after I beat you, maybe I'll destroy the planet. Just 'cause I can."

"You monster!" Hoppy yelled while Hopper yelled, "You mound!"

"Get ready to hop, drop and roll!" Hoppy cried. Ringo laughed and fired purple fire balls at her.

Hopper leapt up and wrapped her tongue around Ringo. He easily electrocuted her.

"Welp, guess I'm doing this on my own." Jasper shrugged. She then lifted of her hair, which in Connie's mind, she might be able to.

"Weighted hair?!" Her friends gasped. Suddenly, Hopper's device repaired itself. "Without her weighted hair, Jasper's power is hop-tastrophic!"

The gem went into her spike mode and speed to Ringo. Jasper ran right into him and turned to bring on more but he swiftly used his new powers to slam her away.

"Jasper!" Her friends sobbed.

The gem grunted. "I'm so sorry, kiddo…" She whispered, taking out the picture. "I put my pride above my feelings… and now you'll never kno-" Ringo suddenly snatched the photo away and Jasper gasped.

"Ah, what a cute little photo!" Ringo laughed. "But you know, there's something not quite right. Oh, I know." The gem in his head glowed and turned the picture of Jasper and Connie into a onion ring.

Jasper watched, enraged, as he ate it.

Her mouth quivered, then she snapped. "ENOUGH!" She yelled. Her bald head glowed and her hair came back, twice as big as usual. Once again, Hopper's device exploded. Jasper floated in the air and Ringo chased after her. "This isgetting ridiculous!"

Jasper kicked him away before he could reach her and her helmet grew and grew. She screamed a war cry as she spiked up with it, catching fire. She slammed into Ringo.

"Hip Hop Hooray!" Her friends cried. Jasper grabbed the magic gem.

* * *

"And so," Connie whispered, finishing her comic book, showing the drawings to Jasper. "Jasper used the gem to return the Foxman to his original form. And as for Ringo, well, he stayed trapped in the Ringo Zone. Forever. That day

Jasper learned a valuable lesson that being strong was about more than just how many mountains you could punch in half or hiding your feelings. It was about love. And there was no greater love than Jasper's love for Connie…. The End! That's what youdid  
today!" The girl cried.

"Yep, that pretty much sums it up." Jasper smirked.

"Really?" Connie cried

"No."


	34. Pumpkin Connie

Connie happily ate a piece of pumpkin pie and munched on pumpkin seeds.

"Hey, Connie." Doug said.

Connie looked at him. "What is it?"

"Check this out." Doug smiled. He popped two pumpkin seeds out of his mouth and they landed on his eyelids.

Connie giggled. She then smirked. "Hm… try and beat this." She stood up, and grabbed a pumpkin seed from the bowl. She didn't like to spit them, because it just wasn't her thing. However, her quick and nimble fingers could sure put on

a show. She swiftly threw the seed and it knocked a can of a stump that was quite a distance away.

"Nice one, pumpkin." Her father grinned. "But this isn't about distance nor accuracy."

"It isn't?"

"Nope. Who can spit… or throw pumpkin seeds the coolest." Doug smiled. He popped three in his mouth. The man leaned over and spit the pumpkin seeds between his legs. They went high or him and he caught them.

"That's amazing, dad!" Connie laughed, clapping. She then noticed her father still hadn't gotten up. "Dad?"

"Help me, Connie!" He groaned. She got up and helped him to his feet. "Beat… that." He wheezed.

Connie smirked and went back to her chair. "You're asking for it!" She cried. The girl suddenly made her shield and turned it so it was like a bowl. She dumped all the pumpkin seeds in the shield and grinned. The girl leapt into

the air and spun her shield around, the seeds scattering everywhere.

Doug's eyes were filled with moons and he whispered, "By jove! It's full of seeds!"

Connie laughed. Doug stood and bowed to her. "My liege."

Connie smiled and curtsied back.

* * *

The next morning, Connie felt the sun on her face and awoke. Apparently, she had slept outside the whole night! She then looked around and realized the whole place was filled with pumpkins. Not only that, but they were shaped like… her!

"They're all… me!" Connie gasped, picking one up.

"You grew these all by yourself?" Jasper asked a few minutes later.

"No!" Connie cried. "They just grew!"

"On the contrary, Connie. The glorious Yellow Diamond had the power to grow sentient plant life to act as her defenders…" Peridot frowned.

"Oh my goodness! Look at this!" Lapis squealed. She picked up a small pumpkin that appeared to be a baby Connie. "Aw, aren't you the cutest thing!"

"It's so precious!" Connie cooed, watching Lapis cradle the thing.

"Well, now I'm just going to be confused when I call you pumpkin." Doug said, stepping over one. "What are we going to do with them?"

* * *

Connie sat at the opening for Funland and happily set up shop.

"There. That's a mighty fine looking table!" Connie smiled, putting the baby pumpkin on the front of the table.

"Connie Universe, what are you doing? I bet you don't have permit for this setup…" Mr. Frowney sighed.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Frowney!" Connie smiled. She gave him a pumpkin. "Um, here. Try one of my Pumpkin Connies!"

"It looks strange." Mr. Frowney said, picking up the pumpkin. "But I'll accept it."

Connie saw Lars walking up and waved. "Hi!"

"Oh, hey Connie." Lars smiled. He walked up and observed the stand. "What's all this about?"

"Just a little side project that I got going on." Connie smiled.

"Oh, really? Ha, that's great." Lars laughed. "How did you get such fine pumpkins?

"Let's just say there's a little Connie in every one of them." Connie winked.

"Great sales pitch, dude. So, how much for one?" Lars asked.

"How much?" Connie asked. "Uh, I was just gonna give you one."

"Come on, I insist. I love supporting local businesses." Lars said.

"Whoa! What's going on here?" They turned to see Ronaldo looking at the pumpkins.

"Hey Ronaldo." Connie said.

"Don't mind me, just doing some live blogging about your weird pumpkins." The teen said, snapping a photo. "Check... out... these weird... pumpkin girls... down by the Funland... entrance... it's... really... weird…"

"Connie, you shouldn't keep your customers waiting like this. I'll just give you five bucks and take one, okay?" Lars asked. Before Connie could refuse, Lars thrust five dollars in her hands and took one.

"What? You're only selling them for five dollars!?" Ronaldo gasped. He then yelled out very loudly, "Hey everybody! Come get a Pumpkin Connie! She's practically giving them away! Hurry before they're gone forever!"

A crowd of people suddenly rushed up and basically threw their money at Connie and took the pumpkins.

"And another, and another, and another, and another... Cool, one hundred dollars." Connie grinned when they were all gone. Suddenly Onion crawled out from under the table.

"Oh, hey Onion." Connie said. The little boy looked at her and motioned with his hands.

"Umm, you want... my money?" Connie assumed.

Onion shook his head and motioned again.

Connie thought then gasped. "Oh! Sorry for the misunderstanding. I'm all out of Pumpkin Connies."

The child pointed to the baby one.

"Sorry Onion, Baby Pumpkin is not for sale." Connie smiled.

Without warning, Onion grabbed the pumpkin.

"Not again!" Connie cried. She got up and raced after Onion. "Ugh! Give me back my Baby Pumpkin!

Suddenly, to both of thier suprise, the pumpkin came alive! It leapt from Onion and ran to its true master.

"You're.. alive!" Connie gasped, slowly accepting its hug. It winked at her. "I really shouldn't be so surprised about this... Oh man, the other ones must be alive too, right?" She cried. The baby only hugged her again.

Connie collected almost all the pumpkins and gave back all the money. She then remembered there was one more person…

* * *

Ronaldo had started recording and had the pumpkin behind him. He grabbed a mixer and a spatula and started to speak. ""Keep Beach City Weird" presents— The first, ever, official, mutant, pumpkin, autopsy."

Connie then slammed through the door. "Ronaldo! Stop!"

Ronaldo gave a gasp. "Connie! Get out of here! You're gonna ruin my web-sclusive!"

"Ronaldo, it's alive!" Connie insisted.

"Not for long." The teen smirked, holding up the mixer.

"Stop! Don't!" Connie cried, grabbing his wrist. He smacked her hand with the spatula and she gave a yelp. Suddenly, the pumpkins took a step forward. Ronaldo looked up. "Wha— G-get away from me! Stay back!"

The pumpkins hissed at him and started to attack. "No!" Connie cried. "Ronaldo! I'll go get help!"

"Connie, is the camera getting all of this!?" Ronaldo gasped.

Connie glanced at the camera and tilted it slightly to get the full scene.

"Sweet!" Ronaldo cried. He got kicked harder.

* * *

Connie ran into the house to see Peridot and Lapis watching Camp Pining Hearts in Connie's room and Jasper reading the newspaper.

"Peridot, Jasper, Lapis!" Connie cried.

"What?" They chorused back.

"My pumpkins came to life, and they're attacking people!"

"WHAT?!" They gasped.

They all ran outside to see the army on the beach. "Oh, wow." Lapis breathed.

"You said they're hurting humans?" Peridot whispered. Connie nodded.

"Yellow's plants lived to fight." Jasper muttered.

"But she can't control them." Peridot assumed. She put her hands on Connie's shoulders. "Connie-"

The pumpkins tensed and looked angry.

"Get in the house." Peridot whispered.

"But-" Connie protested.

"I said, GET IN THE HOUSE!" Peridot screeched, pushing her in. The pumpkins hissed loudly.

"Bring it on." Lapis whispered. The Temps leapt onto the beach.

"Give 'em all you got!" Jasper yelled. Lapis and Peridot leapt away while Jasper made her helmet. She made a spiky ball and slammed into the pumpkins, crushing them.

"Wait! Don't!" Connie yelled from the balcony. She looked at the baby who was holding her hand. "Come on, Baby Pumpkin! We gotta do something."

Peridot flattened her pole to a sheet and slammed into the pumpkins, then flipped the sheet over and over, taking down swarms

"Come on, is that all you got?" Jasper chuckled. The pumpkins tackled her to the ground.

Lapis's eyes darkened and the whole ocean rose behind her.

Connie suddenly ran up. "Everyone! Please stop! I'm okay, look! You don't have to fight anymore!"

"Connie! These clods are trying to bury me in the ground!" Peridot sobbed. A pumpkin walked up with pretty green flowers. "Oh, those are so pretty.." She then started crying again.

"Ah, let go of me!" Lapis growled as pumpkins grabbed her arms and legs, stopping her control of water.

Jasper was tackled once again.

"This is bad. What are we going to do, Baby Pumpkin?" Connie cried. The baby looked at her mistress and closed her eyes. The pumpkin then swiftly kicked Connie in the stomach. Connie gave a cry and fell back. The pumpkins turned and leapt

on the baby. The thing closed its eyes, threw up its arms, and was ready.

"B-Baby Pumpkin?" Connie whispered. Suddenly, a cloud of dust piled up and Connie shielded her eyes. She then saw the pumpkins had surrounded the baby.

"Ugh, let me through!" Connie snarled, pushing past them. She then saw the remains of her little friend…

"Ba-Baby Pumpkin..." Connie whispered, tears coming. She walked to the remains. "I understand... You stopped the pumpkins from fighting everyone else... by making them fight you." She picked up the orange goop left behind

and turned to the rest, tears in her eyes. "Look at what you've done! You think I wanted this?! You should all be ashamed! She knew this is what it would take to calm your rage! ... She understood true loyalty."

The gems and plants were silent.

"Go!" Connie cried. "Think about what you've done! And don't come back until you understand what she did for me, for all of us!"

The pumpkins walked away, into the ocean. Lapis slowly watched them go, to shocked to stop them.

"You did it. Spoken like a true leader." Jasper murmured.

"They don't need a leader, they're their own pumpkins now." Connie whispered. The gems walked up and hugged her. Connie slowly placed the baby's remains on the ground, "Rest in peace, my little child."

* * *

 **You are probably wondering why it's pumpkins instead of watermelons... Is it werid to say that I feel Connie has a closer connection to pumpkins? Maybe it's just because she loves Pumpkin the dog in the real series, but I hope you don't mind such a change!**


	35. Lion 3

Connie searched the Big Doughnut with a suspicious eye.

"You can do this!" Lars called.

"Thanks, Lars. It's just, I could get a donut, Steven told me those are pretty tasty here. However shouldn't I be living life to the fullest? So tonight, maybe I'm thinking... Spicy Pretzels? I mean, it's my first time getting a snack from

here in… years." Connie said, thinking it through.

"Why don't you ask your little friend?" Lars laughed. Connie turned to see Lion walk over to a fridge full of Lion Lickers and put his nose to it. Connie frowned and walked over. "Steven says those are pretty gross, you should try

something else."

"You kids better hurry it up. Sadie and I are closing up-" He then saw Sadie come in from the break room. She hummed a song with her eye closed and exited. "I'm closing up for the day." Lars corrected.

"Lars? What are these?" Connie asked, looking at a fridge that was full of sack lunches.

"Oh, my mom packs them." Lars blushed.

"Aw, cute." Connie grinned.

"Ehh, actually, it's pretty embarrassing. She's been doing it for years. I mean, I know how to feed myself! They just make me feel like a kid, you know?" Lars asked.

"Can I try one?"

"Sure. But, choose wisely. Some of those have been in there for a few months."

Connie blushed.

* * *

Connie didn't know why she had asked for a lunch. Perhaps it was because she didn't really have her real mom to that for her. She slowly opened it and pulled out the contents. "A classic PBJ sandwich cut into triangles…. it's the only shape

a sandwich should be. Lars' mom, this lunch was made with love." She then felt her hand brush against something else. She took out a plastic bag with a star shaped cookie in it. "Lion, look at this! Lion, Lion, look! It's a cookie shaped

like a star. I guess you could say this cookie is... out of this world, eh?" Connie grinned.

The lion huffed out the paper bag onto her.

"I wonder what kind of lunch my mom would've made me…" Connie sighed, looking at the picture of her mother hanging above the door. She looked so peaceful, but also seemed to have a fire for a heart, at least, that's what Connie hoped.

"I just wish... I knew a little more about her…"

Lion suddenly walked up and she frowned. "Um… whatcha doing?"

He kept staring.

"Hm, blink if this means you love me." After waiting a few seconds, Connie blew in his face, making him blink. "He loves me!"

* * *

That night, Connie set up Lion's bed, a big pillow. "All done! I made sure to make it extra comfy, just the way you like it!" She smiled. Lion suddenly leapt up and onto Connie's bed.

"Hey, get out of there! Lion, this is the my bed not yours!" Connie cried, trying to push him off. "Come on! Whoa!" Lion leapt of with the blanket on his head. Connie pulled it off. Connie leapt into bed and cuddled under her

blanket. "Good night, Lion! I love you…" She fell asleep almost immediately.

* * *

Connie awoke in a beautiful place, filled with yellow plants. She blinked. _Where am I? She thought. "What is th-_ Connie suddenly grabbed her burning throat, she couldn't breathe!

* * *

"CONNIE! OH MY DIAMOND, ARE YOU OKAY?!" Peridot screeched, attempting to pull the human out from under Lion. "Stop struggling! I'll save you!" The little gem yelled. "Get off my human/gem hybrid, beast!"

Connie gasped for air when Lion let her go. "W-what happened?!" She gasped, brushing a bunch of hair from her wide eyes.

"Are you alright? Why was your pet lion sleeping on your face?" Peridot asked.

"I don't know. He's being a little clingy today. I don't know why-" Lion suddenly shoved her face into his mane. "See? Wait…" Connie got out of the mane and glanced at Peridot. "Why are you here, Peri?"

"Me? Nothing. I was just uh... well, you know how I always say... um, I just uh…" Peridot was sweating and blushing at the same time. "I like to stare at you while sleep sometimes. And by sometimes I mean every night."

Connie frowned and got up. "Okay then, it's time for everyone to leave me alone. I'm a growing girl and I needs my rest, eight hours to be precise." The girl flopped on her bed and felt someone watching. "Lion, that means you too."

She closed her eyes and still felt that same feeling. She opened her eyes and saw Peridot and Lion looking at her. "Go!" Connie yelled. They both scampered off.

* * *

Connie had soon fallen asleep and in her dream was playing a battle of checkers against Catcopter. The cat suddenly put a chess piece on top of the checkers.

"Hey! That's cheating!" Connie gasped.

 _Life is cheating, Connie. The cat said in a deep female voice without moving her lips. You have to understand this… or you shall perish in your own innocence…_

"Whoa…" Connie whispered in awe.

 _Also, take a deep breath._

"Excuse me?" The world suddenly went black and Connie took a deep breath. She opened her eyes to see that same yellow place… _Here again? Why does this place feel so… familiar?_ Connie thought. _Why can't I breathe? Wait a minute... Lion!_

Connie gave a muffled cry under Lion and fell out. "Lion, stop sleeping on my face! What's going on with you?"

Lion gave a groan and rolled over on his back, exposing his belly.

"You just wanted a belly rub?" Connie asked. Lion grunted. "You never let me touch your belly!" Connie cried. She crawled on Lion but he hugged her into his mane. "It's a trap!" Connie cried. "An adorable trap!"

She laid her head on Lion's mane and grinned. "Okay, you got me! Will you let me go?" She struggled. "Come on now! Ugh!" Loin suddenly sunk his claws into her. She gave a cry.

* * *

The girl pulled the lion outside. " That's it! Lion, you're on a time out! You're gonna stay out here and think about what you did!" She stomped inside the house then heard a sad yowl. She tried to walk up quicker but heard a even sadder

yowl. She turned to see Lion blink at her. "You love me…" She whispered. The girl ran outside and to Lion.

"I just can't stay mad at you!" Connie grinned, hugging it. "You're a wonderful yellow lion." She then opened her eyes and saw she was in that place again. She stumbled out in horror and gasped for air. She looked at Lion and

slowly touched his mane. Lion nodded and Connie saw her hand had a glowing diamond shape around it. She inhaled deeply and leapt into his mane.

 _I'm inside Lion's mane?!_ She thought. _Am I... supposed to do something here?_ She felt her head being pulled to a beautifultree with yellow leaves ona island of land. She started to walk towards it but her cheeks went pink without  
/air. She plunged

/outside Lion's mane and inhaled deeply. She went back in and ran to the tree. She felt her heart stop seeing many memories there that all were and weren't hers at the same time. There was a pretty ingraved yellow chest, a yellow battle flag with

/her

/mother's symbol on the center, a bubbled gem, a picture of her and Doug, and lastly, a tape. Connie frowned and ran to it. She picked it up and saw in swirly cursive writing, _**For Connie.**_

 _For me?_ The girl thought, holding the tape. _Who would put this here? And how does this huge place fit inside of Lion's mane anywa-_ She then felt her air run out and frantically felt for grass but felt none. She bolted to the exit, clutching  
/the tape to her chest. The girl then tripped and somersaulted out of the place.

Connie gasped for air, then heard the temple door opening. She glanced over to see Peridot talking to Lapis and Jasper. "...and he keeps sleeping on Connie's face! But Connie doesn't want me watching her sleep anymore. So one of you two has

to do it."

Connie slowly looked at the tape.

* * *

"Lars! Lars!" Connie yelled, running to the bookstore after putting on her regular clothes.

"Connie, we're just about to open-" Connie whispered something in his ear and he looked at her in disbelief. "Seriously? Come on!" Lars gasped. He pulled her into the store and ran to the back room. They put in the tape and

pressed play.

There was static at first, but then the two saw sea waves. It cut again and they saw the temple, but there wasn't a house attached to it. They then saw a younger Doug Universe dance across the screen. A chuckle was suddenly heard, then a voice.

"Sometimes, I just don't understand you, Doug! Maybe that's why I love you."

Connie could only stare while Lars whispered, "Connie, that voice!" They saw a new clip where Doug was sleeping. He had a seagull on his tummy. "Doug made a new friend." They heard Yellow Diamond whisper.

It cut to another clip and Yellow Diamond laughed, "Come on! Don't keep me waiting!"

"I'm getting stage fright here." Doug said from somewhere off screen.

"Ok… Well then, just tell us about yourself!"

Doug walked on screen. "Well, let's see here... My name is Doug. No, no, no! This is all wrong!" Doug cried.

It cut again and Doug had a guitar. He strummed it. "Okay, go! They call me... Mr. Universe! Get ready baby, you're gonna have the coolest dad this side of the cosmos! Press the button, Yellow!"

"Oh, right!" They heard Yellow Diamond say. There was a click and a colorful wave went across the screen. "Was that the right one?"

"Uh... maybe?"

"Oh, what does this one do?" A diamond zoomed into Doug's guitar.

The tape then caught Doug playing a song to the seagulls. "Isn't it remarkable, Connie? This world is full of so many possibilities. Each living thing has an entirely unique experience. The sights they see, the sounds they hear…"

Connie watched it, smiling with tears in her eyes. "The lives they live are so complicated... a-and so simple. I can't wait for you to join them."

Suddenly, the camera turned and Connie saw her mother. "Connie, we can't both exist. I'm going to become half of you. And I need you to know that every moment you love being yourself, that's me, loving you and loving being you. Because you're

going to be something extraordinary. You're going to be a human being…."

"Hey, Yellow!" They heard Doug call. She glanced at him then back at the camera and smiled softly. "Protect them, Connie…"

The video cut again and they saw Yellow Diamond had shape shifted into a little taller then Doug. Connie saw her pregnancy showing and smiled, seeing her mother and father gently rub her stomach, as if loving the baby itself. They then leaned in

for a kiss… and the camera died.

Sadie opened the door. "Lars, we gotta open up.." They turned with tears in their eyes. Sadie slowly backed away. Lars went to the phone and dialed a number. "Mom? Yeah, you know how I said I didn't need you to make those lunches

anymore?"

Connie walked out with a happy smile, and hugged Lion in thanks. It felt good to be herself… She loved being herself, and knew her mom loved her. She wondered if her mother could hear her think, _I love you too... mom._


	36. Warp Tour

"Ha, another day saved!" Peridot laughed.

"Yeah. That was incredible how you tripped the monster by using the metal of the floor." Lapis grinned.

They had just stepped out of a battle with another corrupt gem.

"Yes, and even though sometimes, you look a little demonic while controlling the water, I thought you did exceedingly well in the fight!" Peridot complimented.

"Oh," Lapis blushed. "Thank you."

Jasper walked out of the field with a bubbled gem and Connie followed with a runny nose and watering eyes. "Sorry I couldn't help much, I think the flowers are making me-" Connie suddenly sneezed.

"Aw man." Jasper grunted.

"Sorry." Connie shrugged.

"Connie, please sneeze into your elbow." Peridot muttered. They all went on the warp pad and warped out.

Connie started feeling like she was gonna sneeze. "Ah… Ah…"

"Aim away from me, please!" Lapis cried.

"Your elbow, Connie!" Peridot yelled. Connie sneezed and it propelled her upward, her head out of the stream.

"Whoa…" Connie whispered. She was surrounded by space. She then saw a warp beam appear and something was in it! "What?!" Connie gasped. Suddenly, Jasper pulled her in.

"Careful! It's dangerous to stick your head out of the stream!" Peridot cried.

"Kid, there isn't a lot of air, and it's freezing out there!" Jasper said, flicking ice off the girl.

"I-I saw something out there!" Connie cried.

"What do you mean?" Peridot asked.

"Something was warping." Connie said.

"Sweetie, maybe you got too much pollen in your eyes. Because something else warping is… impossible." Lapis whispered.

"I know what I saw." Connie huffed. "There's something out there."

"Kiddo, There's nothing out there. There hasn't been anything else for a long, long time." Jasper sighed.

* * *

That night, Connie lay awake, staring at the celling. She almost fell asleep but jolted awake. She glanced at the warp pad and heard the fridge door open. She turned to see Lapis. "Lapis?"

"Oh, sorry, did I wake you?" Lapis gasped. "I was just getting a popsicle. Night, love yo-"

"Wait!"

Lapis glanced up. "What is it?"

"I… can't sleep." Connie sighed.

"Why not?" Lapis asked, cocking her head. She then smirked. "Are you still scared that you saw something in the stream?"

"N-no."

"Okay, well that's good." Lapis stopped before going in her room and glanced up. "Connie… nothing's coming out of that warp, and if they do?" She grinned and put her hand in her mouth, making a fart noise and making Connie smile  
a little. "So what, I'll just drown them for you." Lapis smiled. "Good night."

Connie watched the door close in a blue light and even though Lapis had kind of reassured her, she still felt really nervous. The girl got up and sat by the warp pad. She made her shield and waited. "Guess I'm not sleeping tonight."

* * *

In the morning, Connie was fast asleep.

"Connie! Get up! We have a suprise for you! Come on!" Peridot yelled, shoving her awake. Connie gave a cry and her shield slammed into Peridot.

"Ow." Peridot muttered, getting up and dusting herself off.

"Well, now you're not getting any cookies." Jasper said.

"Cookies?!" Lapis gasped. "I love cookies!" She flew over and took one, chewing it.

"I'm sorry, Peri. I just, I guess I didn't…"

Jasper finished for her. "Didn't sleep."

"Maybe." Connie yawned.

"Connie, is this about the thing you made up outside the warp stream yesterday, is it?"

"But it was real, I didn't make it up! Something was warping somewhere in the warp!" Connie protested.

"Listen here." Peridot said, holding her cheeks. "Nothing on Earth can use the warps but us, we're pretty smart like that. Do you understand?" Connie looked away, upset. "Connie, nod in agreement if you understand. Nod  
in agreement—"

"No offense, kid, but I'm pretty confident Peridot is right." Jasper shrugged. Both looked at her. "But if it'll make you feel better, we can just go check." She sighed.

* * *

And so, Connie warped the gems to the meadow again.

"Nothing here." Jasper said.

Connie sneezed.

"Bless you."

* * *

They warped to the geode.

"No life detected, the geode's holding nicely though." Peridot smirked.

They warped away.

* * *

They even warped to the Sky Spire, the place Connie had first seen fusion before her very eyes.

"Aw! Baby bunnies! Lisa's been busy." Lapis grinned, looking at the babies. "You're a grandma, Connie!"

"Congrats, kid." Jasper smiled, ruffling the girl's hair.

"We're getting off task!" Connie snapped, leading them to jump slightly. They hadn't noticed the dark circles under her eyes until then.

"We looked everywhere, there's nothing!" Peridot said.

"T-then maybe you're wrong." Connie huffed.

"What did you just say?!" Peridot screeched.

Connie flinched. "I-I mean-"

"Nothing on Earth can use these warps but us!" Peridot huffed.

"Well, what if it came from space?" Connie asked.

All the Crystal Temps seemed to freeze up.

"Uh… Come on." Peridot growled.

They warped awa and into the Galaxy Warp.

"These are the warps that once connected us to other planets. If something tried to come from space, it would be through here. But wait! This warp pad is broken, marked inactive by the sign that says so, and you placed here yourself! So, ha!  
I win, you lose!" Peridot yelled, pointing to the sign.

"There's no need to be worried." Lapis smiled.

"We're completely safe here." Jasper said, putting and hand on her shoulder. Connie flinched.

"I suppose." Connie sighed, sitting next to the sign.

All the gems sighed in relief.

"That took… all day." Lapis sighed.

"Eh, we had to make sure Connie felt safe." Jasper said.

"Yes, she's much better now." Peridot smiled.

"I'm a little tired... of you guys telling me how I feel! I know I saw something outside the stream!" Connie yelled, her eyes flashing with fury.

"And I know you didn't!" Peridot retorted.

Lapis and Jasper watched them fight and Lapis frowned. "Huh… This is new."

"Connie, you don't know what you're talking about." Peridot insisted.

"Maybe… you don't know what I'm talking about!" Connie yelled.

Peridot was about to yell back when Jasper suddenly yelled, "QUIET!"

They both looked at her and Jasper grabbed Connie's hand. "Connie, let it go."

* * *

That night, Lapis walked out her room to see Connie sitting at the warp pad, almost unblinking.

"Um, hi." Lapis smiled. "Have… you eaten anything?"

"Nothing." Connie growled. "All the popsicles are gone too."

"Connie, get to bed soon, you look so tired." Lapis said, walking out.

Connie glanced at the warp pad and sighed. "Ugh! Why am I doing this?" She cried. She sighed in defeat. "Fine. I give up! Connie was wrong and everyone else was right! Nothing's going to come through that warp pad!"

And…. nothing did, however, something came through the ceiling. Connie gasped and saw the light turquoise robot waddling around.

" You were the thing in the warp stream!" Connie cried with joy, watching it toddle. "You did come from space!" Connie grinned, looking up at the hole. She saw it moving towards the warp pad. LYou're trying to get to the warp  
pad, aren't you?" Connie blocked it and yelled, "Lapis, come back!" The thing knocked her over and went on her chest. "I knew it! I did see something! Guys! I was right!" She cried. The thing tried to shoot Connie in the face  
with pale white goo. "Guys! Come on! Check this out!" The thing kept hurting her. She grabbed its leg and swung it into the warp pad. "Whoops."

The thing was now cracked but got up and squirted a crack in the warp pad. Connie saw the transportation was healed.

"Oh no you don't!" Connie yelled, seeing it try to warp away. "Jasper! Lapis! Peridot!"

They warped away.

Connie and the robonoid were warping and Connie hung onto it. "Where are you going?!"

She then saw more and more robotoids appear. They all latched onto her and she cried out. The things suddenly pushed her head out of the stream. She gasped for air and pushed herself back in. "Stop it!" She cried. The things then shoved  
her whole body out.

Connie gave a shiver and held onto a robonoid. She looked at it and whispered, "I was right." The girl looked around to see other warp pads activating with robonoids in them as well. She smiled softly as she felt her eyelashes and hair  
clump with ice. "And now… I'm going to die. A tired, frozen, little kid." She felt her body freezing and her breath quicken as it ran out of ovegan. She was about to lose conscious when suddenly, a warp came. Strong arms pulled in her in  
and Connie gasped for air, the warmth bringing a shock too.

She felt Jasper hug her close and all Connie could do was hold onto her.

"Slow down, kid. Take deep breaths…" Jasper muttered. She saw the robot and picked it up. "Huh, this little guy was the thing in the warp stream."

"I.. don't care about that anymore." Connie shivered, hugging Jasper more.

"But I do. And Peridot's gonna flip when she finds out." Jasper grinned. Connie gave a small smile. "I shouldn't have doubted you, you're a Crystal Temp too."

Peridot and Lapis warped in suddenly and Lapis immediately hugged Connie. "Oh, are you okay?! I heard the warp pad, and Jasper told me you were outside the stream and-"

"Connie, I'm glad you're safe, but what is this little robot?" Peridot asked, looking at it.

"You don't know?" Connie asked.

"Hm… No." Lapis muttered. "I.. don't remember this from Homeworld…"

"Well, there were tons of them going to the same place… but where would that be?" Connie asked.

The Temps made it into the Galaxy Warp and saw many little robots go to the Homeward pad.

"What are they doing?!" Peridot asked, pulling her hair in exasperation as the robots shot goo at the broken thing.

"There's so many." Lapis breathed. The things stepped away and the pad was completely fixed. "They fixed it?!"

"What does that mean?" Connie whispered. The Temps looked at her and Peridot sighed. "I don't know."

Suddenly, a sound came and they knew it was the warp. They gasped and Jasper grabbed all the gems in one swoop. She leapt behind a tall rock. They glanced out to see a slender pale stranger with her gem in her forehead. She wore a light pink dress  
with poofed silk sleeves, which was surprising to Conie. This gem, looked so fragile.

"Hmm." The woman said, stamping her feet on the warp.

"Who is that?" Connie whispered.

"How should I know?!" Jasper hissed.

The woman's gem glowed and a straight line appeared. It moved when she talked, indicating it was recording. "Log date 3 1 2. This is Pearl, servent of Lady Rose Quartz, performing Earth hub maintenance check." One of the little things  
crawled on her shoulder and she frowned.

"Pearl. Her name's Pearl." Connie whispered. Lapis and Peridot immediately covered her mouth.

"Warp repair a success. All 79 flask robonoids deployed and accounted for. Preparing to locate and manually reactivate Kindergar—" Pearl stopped speaking when a robonoid, the damaged one, knocked into her leg. She turned to it.

"Aw, the little ones are like her babies." Connie cooed softly.

Pearl glanced at the thing then put her slippered foot on it. She put pressure on until it popped.

Connie gasped and Lapis pulled her down.

"Now to access the domestic warp." Pearl sighed, walking to the center. Her eyes caught the sign and frowned. "What is this?" She picked it up and frowned, glancing around. "This site may have been compromised."  
She walked back to the warp and left. A turquoise stone had been placed on the warp and it deactivated the robots.

Connie ran to the warp and the Temps followed.

"I can't do this again!" Peridot whispered, putting a hand over her mouth.

Lapis seemed to be staring at the warp pad. "They're coming… and we can't stop them."

"Oh yes we can." Jasper growled, venom in her voice that Connie had never heard. She walked up to the warp pad and Connie whispered, "Was that a gem from Homeworld?"

"It doesn't matter, kid." Jasper hissed. Her giant helmet was made and she slammed into the warp, breaking it. "She's never coming back." 


	37. Alone Together

"One, two, three," Peridot said, snapping her fingers.

Lapis and Connie tried to do the same dance, but Connie was lagging.

"Synchronize, you two! Come on!" Peri huffed.

Lapis twirled and dipped Connie but they both started laughing while she held her.

"Ugh." Peridot groaned while Jasper watched behind her.

Lapis and Connie continued to dance and Lapis lifted the girl. They started laughing again.

Peridot stopped snapping and frowned.

She and Jasper came togther and joined hands. "Watch closely, Connie."

They started to dance back and forth when Peridot ran to the wall, ran up it quickly, then flipped to be caught be Jasper.

Connie attempted to do this but when Peridot was flipping and needed to be caught, Connie was too short to catch her. Peridot shrugged to Jasper who thought.

Connie attempted to copy Lapis who spun many times, very fast. Connie fell over after two.

Jasper then tried to show Connie hand motions but Connie didn't get it.

Peridot attempted to dance and Connie tried to follow her lead but instead was kicked in the face by accident.

Jasper, Peridot, and Lapis snapped in perfect unison and Connie was a bit off but of course kept her happy spirit.

Each Temp put a foot forward and Connie put her hand down. The grown women ran and Connie tried to catch up. Jasper, Peridot, and Lapis leapt up gracefully and Connie gave a cry and tried to pose in the air with them.

* * *

In the kitchen, Connie sat on a stool. "I don't get it, I thought I almost had it."

"Nobody expects you to be able to perform fusion right away, Connie." Peridot frowned.

"It's really difficult, even for us." Lapis assured her, walking in.

"I guess so." Jasper shrugged, leaning on the cabinets.

"We'll keep working on the dance for now, and who knows, in a few years…" Peridot paused and thought for a moment. "I wonder though if Connie's body is capable of fusion. Fusion merges the physical forms of gems, but Connie is half-human.

She's what I like to call organic."

"Organic?" Connie whispered.

"Peri, this is Connie we're talking about." Lapis grinned. "Who knows what will happen."

"I think she can do it." Jasper said. Connie looked at her, clearly worried.

* * *

"So, there's no steps? No nothing?" Steven asked, sitting on the beach with Connie.

"No, it's than just dancing. When they fuse, they glow and kind of… phase into each other. I don't know if I can even do that. I'm not even good at dancing." Connie sighed, biting her lip.

"Sure you are!" Steven cried. "Try it with me!"

Connie blushed. "Steven, I don't dance in front of anyone but the Temps. I just can't stop thinking about everyone staring at me."

"No one's staring at you right now." Steven said.

"Um… you are." Connie whispered.

"Please?!" Steven begged.

Connie blushed harder and slowly stood up. She dusted herself off. "Cover your eyes."

"What?" Steven asked.

Connie sighed and smiled, "Just do it."

He did so and she grabbed his hand. "Now we can dance."

She pressed play on her phone and played some music.

Steven peaked at Connie and smiled.

She blushed and laughed. Steven pulled Connie forward and twirled her. Connie laughed and danced by herself for a moment, her hair blowing in the wind. Steven did a little jig and Connie couldn't help giggling and blushing. The children ran around  
/carefree when they suddenly bumped into each other. Steven started to fall but Connie caught him. They paused looking into each other's eyes and blushed. Connie let out a giggle and leaned her forehead onto Steven's. They didn't notice a yellow glow  
/coming from Connie's chest.

A new person opened their eyes and saw rosy brown legs. They frowned and saw Steven and Connie's shoes nearby. "Whoa. Why am Iuo-? Why is…" Their hand picked up Connie's flat. "- Connie, your shoe is too small for my - your

feet…" They put the flat to their foot and saw it was too small for them. They slowly ran their fingers along themself then gasped.

"Connie? Steven!" They cried, their self and their components very confused.

The teen looked down and gasped. "Oh, oh, I did it?!" Connie cried from inside the fusion.

"Connie! This is amazing!" Steven yelled from inside them. "Look at you!"

They stood and Connie whispered in them, "I'm a fusion…"

They laughed and giggled in a mixture of the children's joy. They then tripped.

"We gotta show everyone." They whispered.

* * *

The Temps stared in shock and the teen grinned. "What do you think?"

"She fused… with a human child?!" Peridot gasped.

"You, okay?" Lapis whispered to Jasper. The gem had her mouth wide open in shock.

"This is unprecedented." Peridot whispered, walking up and examining them. "A Gem fusing... with a human being? It's utterly impossible! Or at the very least inappropriate."

Lapis flew up and squished their face. "You two look absolutely adorable together. How does it feel? Steven? Connie? … Stevonnie?"

"It feels incredible." Stevonnie sighed.

"Yes. Well, I'm glad you're enjoying yourselves, but you two should un-fuse this instant." Peridot demanded.

"Whaaat?!" Stevonnie gasped, Steven clearly talking. "But, you were so scared that Connie wouldn't be able to do this, you're proud of her, right?"

"Of course I am!" Peridot huffed. "I never said otherwise. Jasper, do something."

Jasper walked up and placed her hands on Stevonnie's shoulders. "Stevonnie, listen very, very closely, you are a experience, make it a good one. A fusion…" Jasper quickly glanced at Lapis who had seemed to look away the moment they met

eyes. "it's either a new piece in a bridge of two things relationship, or a breaking of that bridge. Got it?"

"Got it." Stevonnie said.

"Now, get out of here, go have some fun!" Jasper smiled.

* * *

Stevonnie started to run and was determined. They cartwheeled to the edge of a cliff and went off. They giggled and laughed as they floated to shore. Their hair floated in the water. They heard their stomach growl and glanced at the Big Doughnut.

Sadie and Lars were arguing when Stevonnie entered. They wrung out their hair. Sadie and Lars automatically blushed and stared at them. "H-how can I help… me." Sadie whispered.

"Two doughnuts, please." Stevonnie said.

The two stared and Sadie slowly dropped a bag on the counter. Stevonnie grabbed it. "What do I owe you?"

They still stared and Lars suddenly slammed his fist down. "I-it's nothing. On the house."

"Whoa! Really?!" Stevonnie gasped. Both the teens nodded numbly. "Okay…" They muttered. They walked out and turned to them again. "That's not really a good business process."

Stevonnie walked to a bench and sat down. "Sweet! Two doughnuts! One for me, and one for…" Stevonnie frowned and slowly put the doughnuts together. "me…"

After a few seconds, Stevonnie whispered, pulling the doughnuts apart. "Are you okay? You know we could aways-"

"No! No, magic stuff, this is great." Steven said inside them. The doughnuts went together again. Stevonnie munched on the doughnuts and felt someone watching. They saw Sour Cream walk up. He looked nervous.

"Oh hey, Sour...-faced stranger. Wow, cool pants!" Stevonnie gasped, looking at his pants.

"Yeah. Cool rave tonight." Sour Cream muttered.

"Like a dance?" Stevonnie asked.

"Yeah, at the warehouse. I'm DJ-ing, and a bunch of my friends from the internet are gonna be there. There's gonna be free... glow sticks…" Sour Cream murmured.

"Yes! I'll definitely be there! Yes. Thanks!" Stevonnie laughed.

* * *

Later, Stevonnie got to the warehouse. Almost all the town's youth was there, and dancing. Ronaldo was free styling. A teen saw him and sighed in disgust.

Stevonnie paused in the doorway, and put a brave face on. People paused as she passed. Stevonnie started to dance and everyone watched in awe. Stevonnie twirled and then knee slid. They flipped thier hair. Stevonnie launched up and twirled in the

air, they landed with a satisfied sigh. They saw all the people were speechless and still staring.

"I- thought this was a dance party." The teen whispered, looking around. "Why isn't anyone else dancing. This is what being cool at a cool dance is, right? This is how it's supposed to be... Why isn't it like it's supposed to be?"

They started to hyperventilate and panic. The people around them seemed to turn into dark shadows and they felt trapped. Stevonnie was thier own person, but they also had two people that made them that were both insecure at the moment, and it was

ripping them apart.

Suddenly, a new face became clear in the darkness. It was a teenage boy that looked very… sinister for some reason. He came up and looked Stevonnie up and down, which made them feel awkward.

"Hey baby." He said.

Stevonnie blinked and found they were back in the warehouse. People were chatting around them and then they saw the boy had his hands on his hips, smugly waiting for their reply.

"Huh?" Stevonnie had no idea what to say.

"Get ready," He said, leaning forward and offering them his hand. He slid around them and whispered, "it's Kevin Time."

Stevonnie watched him dance arrogantly as the song changed and saw more and more people watching them. Kevin was dancing closer and closer to them. Stevonnie suddenly ran out.

They leaned on the wall, panting and holding their stomach. "I don't understand what's wrong. You have fun dancing but this dance isn't fun. You're supposed to like this." Then Stevonnie remembered, they were a fusion. "Why- don't

we like this?"

"I wish you were here," Steven and Stevonnie whispered. "If we were together, it would be okay. But togther like this? It's not."

"I'm alone." Stevonnie whispered

The teen's eyes snapped open when a hand went very close to their head. "Not tonight." The teen turned to see Kevin smirking at them. "Hey baby, why'd you leave me on the dance floor?"

Stevonnie was nervous. "I don't -" They then shoved his hand away. "I don't want to dance anymore."

"What are you talking about?" Kevin laughed, brushing his fingers through his hair. "We're the best thing that's ever happened to this place. Come back out with me."

"Why should I?" Stevonnie growled.

"Because we're angels walking among garbage people. We're perfect for each other." Kevin smirked.

"How can you say that!? You don't even know us!"

"Oh, whoa. I'm just looking for a dance!" Kevin huffed. "Don't get crazy."

"No one is crazy. I just don't like feeling alone here!" Stevonnie cried.

"If you're so lonely, then dance with me!" Kevin snapped.

"Ugh! Fine." Stevonnie said, glaring at him. "You wanna dance? Let's go."

They grabbed Kevin by the arm and pulled him out on the dance floor. Stevonnie turned to him. "And it's Stevonnie, I am not your baby."

Stevonnie started to dance aggressively, kicking and pushing, all the while forcefully grunting. Kevin turned blue, "Okay, bring it back girl."

Stevonnie ignored him and they started jumping on the ground, not noticing the yellow gem glowing. With a pop, Stevonnie was gone, in her place was Connie and Steven, lying on the ground.

Kevin saw them and frowned. "It's two kids! I'm out."

Connie watched him walk off and turned to Steven. "We're back…"

They didn't notice the crowd staring, only saw each other.

Steven started laughing suddenly, with tears in his eyes.

Connie grinned and started laughing as well.

Sour Cream suddenly threw out glow sticks and the kids got up, dancing happily and laughing.


	38. The Test

Connie was laying on the couch and heard metal clanging. She glanced up to see Peridot working on her gadgets. Lapis was next to her on the couch, reading the newspaper and Jasper was just relaxing.

Connie heard Peridot muttering under her breath and walked over.

"What are you doing?" Connie asked.

Peridot glanced up and frowned. "Well, I need a few more screws to complete it, but I ran out."

"Oh, I can run into town and get some more for you! I was going down there anyway." Connie smiled.

"Yes, that would be excellent, thank you Connie." Peridot said.

Connie ran up to her room and looked all around for her backpack. When she found it, she dumped it all out and a flat yellow thing fell out. Connie cocked her head and lifted it up.

She soon trudged back downstairs.

"Connie, what's wrong?" Lapis asked, glancing up from her newspaper.

"This." Connie dropped the uninflated raft on the floor. The Temps looked at it. "I'm so sorry that mission didn't work out… I wasn't quick enough and now the Sea Spire's gone forever."

"Oh Connie." Lapis sighed.

"Kid, you were amazing on that mission, don't let anyone tell you different." Jasper grinned.

"But the Sea Spire. It was a special, important monument, unique to my culture." Connie sighed.

"Connie, that place wasn't important at all! If it was, why would it be a test for you?" Peridot laughed.

"Test? What do you mean, a test?" Connie asked.

She saw all the Temps looked worried and were silent.

"Well, um, it wasn't a test, really. It was a way to see if you were ready to go on missions…" Lapis said.

"That's exactly what a test is!" Connie cried.

"Connie, we didn't plan this behind your back, it just seemed like a good plan and…" Jasper was interrupted by Connie whispering, "I failed it… I failed the test."

"You didn't fail! You were wonderful!" Lapis said.

"Yes, quite a leader, I must admit." Peridot grinned. "That Spire was in much worse shape than we thought. It should have been really easy!"

"I failed an easy test?!" Connie gasped.

"Peri, you're making this worse!" Lapis cried.

"Come on!" Jasper groaned.

"I didn't mean to be rude!" Peridot protested.

Connie started to panic. "I… I need another test!"

"You've come so far!" Peridot retorted.

"And let prove it!" Connie beamed. "I can do this!"

Lapis and Peri glanced at Jasper.

* * *

"Well, we adjusted the temple to create a really complicated, really hard, and really dangerous dungeon for you. Each of us has designed a chamber that simulates a real mission. If you get out alive? The final door will unlock and we will  
be waiting for you!" Peridot explained.

"Hooray!" Connie cried.

"This is not going to be easy." Jasper sighed.

"I won't let you down!" Connie cried, pumped up.

"There you go!" Peridot said.

"I'm ready."

The temple door opened and Connie entered into a dark hallway.

"Be careful." Lapis whispered. "You're going to need to be…"

The door closed and Connie heard torches light. She turned and saw blue flames in the torches. "I wonder if this is Lapis' room."

Suddenly, on either side of the narrow platform, water started falling from behind her, very, very quickly. "Definitely Lapis' room!" Connie started to run, the water coming after her. The room was very long and walls kept springing  
up out of nowhere, Connie barely avoiding them. She finally reached the end of the room. Connie put her hand on the door. It started to foam out, making Connie a little nervous but then blew into pretty yellow balloons shaped like diamonds. Connie  
giggled and ran through.

The door was barred once more. Connie saw the door not that far away, but there seemed Connie felt scared. This wasn't right. She slowly stepped off the starting platform and immediately, a green laser fired, just missing her head. Connie gasped  
as more lasers came. Over seconds, she discovered there was a pattern to it all. The girl nimbly avoided it and got to the end of the room. The balloons came and Connie wiped sweat of her brow. "That was close… really close." She panted.

The girl entered the next room, knowing it was Jasper's room. The room was full of axes swinging from the ceiling, and fire from the ground and spikes on crushers. Connie ran, avoiding the axes and fire and spikes. She could see the door. It was  
so close, she was so close to proving herself. The girl was so thrilled she didn't see spikes racing to her until it was too late. Connie saw it and gave a scream. Then, she realized there was no pain. She slowly opened her eyes to see the thing had  
stopped. It went up and she slowly went out from under it. The spikes then resumed slamming down the moment she was gone. After watching for a moment, Connie suddenly stuck her arm under it and it stopped again. "What?" Connie asked. Then,  
fire came up, onto Connie, yet not. She stuck her arm out, the flames licking her arm but not hurting her in anyway. "No… It can't be!"

She ran back to Peridot's room and opened her arms to be hit by the lasers but they passed through her. "What is going on?!" She cried. "None of it mattered?!"

She ran to Lapis' room and she saw it had completely restarted. The water started to come in again. Connie walked confidently to it and the walls sprang up. Connie walked right through it. "Not this too!" The water came and it didn't  
hit her. Connie gave an angry yell and walked to the water, pushing it upward. She got up and passed through the testing zone. She stood on top and saw the three rooms, equally spaced. She felt her anger boiling.

"I… can't believe it." Connie huffed, walking to the end. "Be careful, you're going to need to be!" Connie growled. "How am I supposed to prove myself if you guys can't even-" She reached the end and saw a room filled  
with balloons and a banner that said Congratulations on it. She heard the Temps talking…

"Why isn't she here yet? She's taking much longer than I thought she would." Peridot said. She then looked up. "Do you think she got herself hurt somehow?"

Lapis bit her, looking at Jasper with worry.

"Nah, it's impossible to get hurt in there." Jasper sighed.

"She's done well for being a half human." Peridot muttered. "She's summoned Yellow Diamond's shield, she's made her bubble, and she's excellent at the art of the sword… But she lost her healing powers. We must make her feel better."

Lapis looked down and sighed softly. "We're bad at this, aren't we?"

"What?" Peridot gasped. "I'm did an excellent job with my ro-"

"It's not about that!" Lapis snapped, making her friend go silent. "You know, you can't control her and I shouldn't even be near her, and we need Yellow to tell us what to do!"

"Lapis, you're letting your emotions take control! We need to teach her to be a gem!"

"Connie is not just a gem, guys." Jasper sighed. "There's never been anything or anyone like Connie. We don't know what she needs."

Connie slowly crawled back and thought it over, weighing her options.

Connie soon leapt back down to Lapis's room. She walked with a quick pace. She heard the water she knew was coming and spun herself around to glare at it. She walked through the walls. She then walked through the laser attack and through the fire,  
spikes, and axes, still upset as they always avoided her. She gave a sigh and opened the door.

Lights came on and the Temps were clapping for her, as if she had actually done something incredible.

"Yes! I knew you had it in you kid!" Jasper yelled.

"Remarkable!" Peridot beamed.

"Great job!" Lapis grinned.

Connie slowly walked up to them and their clapping slowed.

"Connie, why are you… acting strange?" Peridot asked.

Connie bowed her head. "That was… so… so…" She looked up with a beam and her cheeks pink, as if she had believed it all, "incredible!"

The Temps smiled and glanced at each other.

"I mean, that water?! I was gonna drown for sure I thought, but I made it! And those lasers! Those were so cool! It was like I was in an adventure story! I got real scared with all that fire, and axes, and spikes, but I found I was stronger  
than I ever thought I could be!" Connie laughed, seeing her praise lighten up her guardians'' faces. "I… You guys are the best! Thank you for doing this for me… I needed it."

"Of course." Peridot nodded.

"It was our pleasure." Lapis grinned, eyes shining.

"Eh, a bit too sappy for me." Jasper said. Lapis laughed and punched her playfully in the arm.

They went up and hugged Connie.

"We are very proud of you." Peridot murmured.

"Oh, we knew you could do it!" Lapis cried.

"Nice job, kiddo." Jasper said, ruffling her hair.

Connie smiled softly. She hadn't needed this test, they had. 


	39. Prediction Problems

Connie was in her room and sighed. She had a box next to her and stood in front of her bookshelf.

"Oh, I can't believe I'm doing this!" The girl moaned. She carefully grabbed a few books and sighed. "My bookshelf has gotten so full, I need to… get rid of a few. I'll have to get rid of all the childish books, like the fairy tales, the No Home Girls series, and… The Spirit Morth Series, because I'm getting older." Connie felt a tear slip down her face as she loaded them up.

She started to walk down when she slipped and fell down the stairs, right into Jasper.

"Hey kid, that was quite a good entrance you made." Jasper asked, putting her own.

"I sure am lucky that you were right there." Connie grinned.

"Oh, um, yeah…" Jasper said, rubbing the back of her neck.

"How do you always know where to be?" Connie asked, picking up her things with Jasper.

"That's for me to know, you to never find out." Jasper winked, giving her the play sword.

"Are you going to tell me something cool?" Connie asked.

"Nope, not at all." Jasper chuckled.

"Please? I'm old enough!" Connie insisted.

Jasper seemed hesitant but said, "I'm just… good at predicting things, I've lived for many years, and have seen things no child like you should… You kinda get a knack for it as you grow. And I already knew from the moment you came… ou would attract much danger."

"Meh, danger's my middle name!" Connie cried.

"That's a lie." Jasper said. She booped Connie's nose. "Your middle name is cutie pie, am I right?" She winked.

Connie giggled.

* * *

Later, Connie and Jasper were exercising together. Connie pumped tiny weights while Jasper heaved 100 pounds in each arm. Connie then put them down and went into a handstand, which Jasper helped her with. Connie kicked her legs once Jasper had let go. Jasper resumed pumping iron when she suddenly threw the weights to the ground and leapt up. She made her helmet and smashed the iron into pancakes.

Connie stared in admiration and Jasper said, "Peridot will fix them later."

"The day has so much potential." Connie sighed. "What are my breakfast possibilities?"

"Hmm, knowing you?" Jasper said, rubbing her chin. "Probably the Big Doughnut, since you're already outside…. and you probably want to see Steven, he goes there all the time." The gem grumbled.

Connie blushed. "Is there any chance you come with me and have a great time?"

"Well…" Jasper thought.

"Please?" Connie asked, diamonds in her eyes.

Jasper looked at her.

"Pretty please?" The girl was jumping up and down with her eyes shining.

Jasper frowned.

"PLEASE!" Connie yelled.

"Okay! Okay!" Jasper laughed. "Let's go!"

Jasper and Connie walked on the beach.

"Do Lapis and Peri have great predicting abilities like you?" Connie asked, looking up at Jasper.

"Well, Peridot usely just goes with her own way, without thinking about what could happen, and Lapis hasn't lived as long as me or Peri… I just have seen so many things, and have lived on Earth for quite a while." Jasper turned to see Connie beaming. "But, don't get me wrong, it isn't some kind of future vision, other gems have that ability. I'm just good at seeing the worst and the best that can happen, just by using my own experience."

* * *

After looking for Steven in the Big Doughnut, and seeing he wasn't there, Jasper slowly went out from in front of Connie.

"So, what could happen if I said "hi" to Lars?" Connie asked.

"Like a normal human, he'd probably say hi back." Jasper shrugged.

"Hi Lars!" Connie grinned.

Lars turned from the doughnuts and grinned, "Oh, hi Connie."

Connie laughed and looked at Jasper. "That's was too easy! What if I say hi… to Sadie! We're kinda friends, kinda not."

"Well, once again, this isn't future vision so I can't predict exactly what could happen if she kinda wasn't your friend…. Maybe she'd give you a high five or something if she thinks she's too cool to be around you, which she isn't." Jasper muttered. Connie didn't listen to the rest, her eyes filled with hope. Jasper talked on. "But she's holding some pretty hot looking coffee, so I wouldn't startle-"

"A high five… from Sadie!" Connie gasped. She ran to Sadie. "Hi Sadie!" Sadie gasped and was startled, dropping the coffee in Connie's direction. Jasper ran up and blocked Connie from being hurt.

"Oh my goodness, are you okay?! That coffee was super hot!" Sadie gasped while Lars started in shock.

"Be careful next time!" Jasper growled, shrugging off the coffee.

* * *

Connie ran to the fry shop and to Peedee. "You know what I want." The boy rolled his eyes and went in.

"Do you think I could get hurt by this?" Connie asked, turning to Jasper.

"Oh yeah." Jasper said.

"How?" Connie gasped.

"Well, you can choke on fry bits, that's always a possibility. Or fall in a hole, or get food poisoning, or… are you allergic to wasps?"

"I don't know…" Connie whispered.

"Well, you could still get hurt by wasps, I suppose, probably not die though." Jasper shrugged calmly.

Connie looked nervous and whispered, "What I just stand here?"

"Um, you'll get a sunburn, you didn't put any sunscreen on this morning." Jasper said, walking away. Connie ran after her. "Jasper! Wait!"

She looked at the ocean and imagined herself getting eaten by a shark.

Connie looked at the Big Doughnut and imagined the sign falling on her.

In her mind, her favorite protagonist, Lisa came up to her.

Lisa?! How are you real?!" Connie in her mind cried.

Lisa suddenly stabbed her through and Connie whispered, "You're evil?!"

That would never happen…. Connie thought to herself. She sweated in fear all the way home

* * *

Later, Connie had her shield in one hand… as she made a sandwich.

"Hey, kiddo!" Jasper cried. Connie gave a yelp in surprise.

"Why do you have your shield out?" Jasper asked.

"I'm just trying to defend myself." Connie shrugged.

"From the sandwich?" Jasper chuckled.

"No!" Connie huffed, embarrassed. "I just got to…" her heart thumped as she reached for a plastic knife. "pick up… the knife to spread the mayonnaise… pick up… the knife!"

"Um kid?" Jasper asked as she was hyperventilating.

The girl then gasped, "Oh! I got it!" She picked up the jar of mayonnaise, opened it and plopped it all on the sandwich. It splattered everywhere.

"Wow. I didn't even think of it, but that can kill you faster." Jasper thought.

"Not funny!" Connie cried.

"Whoa, chill out." Jasper said.

Lapis and Peridot walked into the room and Lapis asked, "Connie, are you ok?"

"No." Connie huffed.

The other Temps walked to the warp pad and Peridot called to Jasper, " We're all ready."

"You guys are going on a mission?" Connie gasped. Jasper started to walk away when Connie grabbed her arm. "Hold on! Uh, you don't have to leave right this second, d-do you?"

"Uh, yeah." Jasper shrugged.

"But… what do you think will happen to my dinner?!" Connie cried.

"I'm… gonna guess it'll go into your stomach." Jasper smirked.

"Jasper! Hurry up!" Peridot cried.

Jasper bent down to Connie and put her hand on her shoulders. "Connie, I can't protect you all the time. Just trust me when I say that you are in control…" Jasper smiled. Connie gave a tiny grin back. Jasper's face then faded to grim when she said, "Don't go on the roof, ever."

* * *

Later that night, Connie sat in the window nook, curled up. "What could happen on the roof?"

Thunder boomed. Connie gasped and grabbed her sword, which she had placed beside her, shaking in fear. The door suddenly blew open and she inched over to close it.

"I-I'm ok, I just need to calm down." Connie breathed. "Maybe I should get a snack." She then imagined the fridge falling on her, and then a chandelier.

Connie squealed in fear. She huddled under a blanket and then whispered, "What's happening to me? I'm braver then this! I'm older now! I'm supposed to be a Crystal Temp!" The girl yelled, punching out from under the table and running outside.

She climbed up to the roof in the storm, her hair and clothes soaked. She stood shakily and looked into the sky, yelling, "Why did Jasper tell me not to come out here?!"

The familiar blue glow came from the house, saying the gems were home.

Jasper suddenly ran out.

"Kid! What are you doing?! Get off the roof!" Jasper yelled.

"No! If something might happen, I'm just gonna let it!" Connie yelled.

"Connie, you don't understand!" Jasper said. "Now get down here!"

"No!" Connie sobbed, grabbing her head. "Everything I do shoves me violently towards the end! The more you say, the more I know how scared I am of this life I have!" She fell to her knees. "I can't live like this!"

Jasper watched her cry on the roof with sadness.

"Why did you tell me your predictions?! Why shouldn't I be on the roof?!" Connie sobbed.

"I was joking, Connie, and I'm sorry I always do! You took it too seriously!" Jasper yelled. "I've seen so much, know what might happen from such horrible memories, I thought, knowing you, you might do this and get scared, but I ignored my brain, like I always do!"

"Why did you tell me than?!"

"I took a risk at your expense. I thought you might understand, making us closer! Connie," Jasper sighed. "I think of so many things that can hurt you. I should never have let myself hurt you, ever again. "There are millions of things that could happen to you, but if you focus on what could happen, you'll never see what wonderful things are happening! Please understand. You must live, not be consumed by worry." Jasper smiled softly. "Leave that to me."

"I do understand. I…" Thunder crackled around Connie and she looked around. "What am I doing? I guess I can't really see wonderful things up here." She then climbed off the roof and hugged Jasper, with her eyes closed. "I'll watch out for myself from now on."

Jasper looked up and her eyes widened in surprise. Her helmet came on and blocked Connie from a bolt of lightning.

"What was that?" Connie whispered, not looking up.

"Nothing at all, kiddo."


	40. On The Run

Connie was laying on her stomach, immersed in a good book. Even though Jasper had said she was banned from books for a thousand years, Connie was crying all that night, sobbing, so they took it back. The book was from the series, The No Home  
Girls.

"Whoa. How are they going to get out of this one?" Connie gasped. She flipped the page and scanned it, smiling. "Ah, so that's how!"

The warp pad suddenly glowed and Connie ran over to see Jasper, Peridot, and Lapis holding piles of turquoise roboniods.

"You're back!" Connie beamed. She saw the robots and frowned. "Those things from the Galaxy Warp… Why did you bring them here?"

"We can't have them reactivating and fixing the Homeworld Warp, that would be catastrophic!" Peridot said.

Lapis suddenly leapt on one and destroyed it, leaving its goo everywhere.

"Lazuli, now is not the time to be messing around!" Peridot cried. Lapis slowly stepped away, blushing. "I was going to dismantle it, see how it works, and then kill it, not you!"

"Chill. We're still cut off. The Earth is safe." Jasper muttered.

"From what?" Connie whispered. "W-What do the Homeworld Gems want to do?"

"Centuries before you were made, those clods did something horrible, despicable, and evil, even worse than what they did before, making the Kindergarten, where Jasper was made." Peridot said. Lapis slowly looked away. "It was something  
that would have caused much destruction if your mother, Jasper and myself hadn't stopped it-" Peridot bit her lip. Lapis suddenly flew out the window, to everyone's surprise.

Connie looked after her and frowned. "I'm gonna go check on her."

"Wait… it may be better if you don't." Jasper grunted, exchanging a worried look with Peri.

Connie didn't listen and ran down the steps, noticing Lapis sitting on the beach, all by herself.

"Lapis? Are you okay?" Connie asked. Lapis flinched. She turned and gave a smile.

"Of course, sweetie. Do you need something?"

"Are we… like The No Home Girls?" Connie asked, sitting down beside her and showing her a book.

"Hm, what's that?" Lapis asked.

"It's a book series about these girls who have no home. So they travel around the country, living in boxcars, and riding river rafts, solving mysteries! They had a successful run, until the disastrous graphic novel adaptation." Connie  
groaned. She showed the book she was reading. "But my favorite story is this classic one where the no home girls are chased across the countryside by a mysterious pursuer, which turns out to be the very fear resting within themselves."

"But… your home's right there." Lapis frowned, pointing to it.

Connie glanced at it and sighed. "Sometimes… I want to be a no home girl. No past, no future, just the open road for miles and miles."

Lapis smiled softly then thought of something. "That does sound like a lot of fun… We should do it!"

"Really? B-but-" Connie protested but Lapis put a finger to her lip.

"Come on, I'll keep you safe. Let's just run away." Lapis smiled. Connie looked into the woman's eyes, knowing she would let her own gem shatter before letting anyone hurt Connie.

* * *

Connie and Lapis had packed up bindles and were walking on the road.

" _It's time to get moving, time for us to have some fun. There's no time to hang around, our adventure's just begun_." Connie sang accepting a ride from her friends Buck, Sour Cream, and Jenny to the border of Beach City. " _We'll be thinking about our friends as we chase the setting sun,_ "

Lapis joined in when she scooped Connie up on her back and they flew into the air.. " _But we're leaving them behind, we're on the run!_ "

The two soon encountered a raccoon when they landed on the ground. The raccoon followed them for quite a ways until it attacked Connie, then Lapis scared it away.

They soon came across a train, and Lapis saw an open boxcar. She grinned and flew Connie over.

" _We're on the run_." Connie sang while Lapis sang, " _I don't care what my home has to say. Well, I guess if they find us, my hopes will all dash away. I'd love to say that there's just no better place then home,_ "  
Lapis sighed, falling on her back.

" _But home's a place I've never even known…_ " Connie sang with her. Lapis clenched her eyes closed, holding back something.

Later, they sat on top of the train and sang, " _That's why we're on the run…_ "

* * *

Later, Connie opened her bindle and was about to eat when the raccoon from before attacked her, eating the food.

"Leave her alone!" Lapis yelled, water from her gem smacking it away.

Connie gave a weak smile.

"Here." Lapis sighed, giving Connie her own lunch.

"Thanks." Connie whispered.

Lapis nodded, then turned away. She sat at the front of the doorway.

Connie gave a sigh. "I'm getting tired. I'm gonna sleep on hay, just like the no home girls." Connie crawled on the hay pile and frowned, trying to get herself comfy. "You know, I feel like I've been misled about hay. It always looks  
so soft in those illustrations, but it's actually really scratchy." Another hay stack fell on her and she immediately said, "Lapis, I want to go home now."

The gem didn't respond. Connie got up and sat next to her. "Lapis? I'm done pretending to be a no home girl."

"Oh… maybe we can stay like this for a few more days?" Lapis whispered, her dress blowing in the wind.

"Peri and Jasper are probably missing us, they're probably wondering when we're coming home." Connie smiled.

"That's not my home, Connie." Lapis whispered.

Connie glanced up. "Oh! You were made on  
Homeworld!"

"... I didn't say that was my home either. I might've been made there, but that's not my home." Lapis sighed.

"Then where did you come from?" Connie asked.

* * *

Lapis landed in the battlefield full of strawberries and smiled grimly. "Here we are."

"Lapis, you said you didn't fight here." Connie said.

"And I didn't. Connie, Homeworld left me here, surrounded by shattered gems when I was so young… A baby age for a gem."

"Why would they do such a horrible thing?" Connie gasped.

"Because…" Lapis glanced and Connie's gem then turned away. "nevermind."

She walked over to the warp pad and picked up some large crystals left on the field. "Oh, I used to play with these when I was little, like they were dolls… friends."

"Aw, that's so cute!" Connie gushed.

"And there's where I took off to go flying every morning…" Lapis said, pointing to a large rock.

"How… long did you live out here?" Connie asked.

"Um, a while, until your mother and the others found me…" Lapis sighed. They were walking among the strawberries when they saw a giant ax from the ground.

"What's this?" Connie gasped.

Lapis frowned. "Oh… that. Just some weapon from the battles fought before I was put here."

Connie eyed it before Lapis ran off again. Connie followed and saw her kneeled on the ground.

"They're still here." Lapis whispered.

Connie bent down and saw some familiar gem shaped dents in the ground, as if they had been poofed. "Lapis…." Connie looked at her with fear. "why were Peridot and Jasper poofed here?" Lapis looked away from her.

They suddenly heard the glow of the warp pad and turned to see Peridot running to them after looking around with worry.

"There you are!" The gem huffed, walking up to them.

"Oh… look who it is. Come to take me home?" Lapis muttered with venom in her voice.

Peridot gave a growl. "Lazuli! What were you thinking bringing Connie to this place?!" They walked closer to each other and Connie ran to Peridot.

"Hm, I figured it would be fine, seeing as I always keep her safe." Lapis snapped, the last word coming sharp.

"Peri, was Lapis really abandoned by Homeworld?" Connie peeped.

Peridot looked at her with worry then at Lapis. "You clod! How much did you tell her?!" She hissed under her breath.

Lapis looked down and whispered. "Oh… you mean the bad thing? That this is the place that you and Jasper were poofed by a innocent little bad gem, who was made to do that? Is that what we're talking about?"

"Lapis, shut it!" Peridot cried but Connie whispered, "... What are you talking about?"

"Oh, but don't you worry Connie!" Lapis chuckled, with a small smirk. "They fixed the gem!"

"Lapis-"

"And they won, and they tried to change her…" Lapis whispered.

"Stop!" Peridot cried.

"But deep down, I've always known my purpose and that Homeworld custom-made me for a bigger destiny than most!" Lapis growled, Connie backing away. "They made me to look innocent, so she would never suspect that I was the perfect  
trap…. That I was made to shatter the Rebellion and capture Yellow Diamond!" Lapis yelled.

Connie gasped in fear, clutching the gem on her chest. Peridot grabbed Lapis' wrist. "How dare you say that to her!" Peridot hissed.

"You… You were made… to bring me to them?" Connie breathed.

"Connie, I never wanted Lapis to tell you this… that she was made to… hurt us." Peridot sighed, blocking Connie from Lapis.

"Then you'd better run." Lapis whispered, water coming from her gem.

She flew up and landed behind Peridot, swiftly kicking her in the back, slamming into the handle of the ax, jarring it out of place.

"Admit it," Lapis snarled. The water froze into icicles and shot at Peridot, aiming almost at her gem. "you're still scared of me!"

"Lazuli! Stop!" Peridot yelled, her pole flattening and making a shield. "I don't want to fight you!"

"That's because you can't win! I was made to beat you!" Lapis growled. The water slammed down on Peridot, knocking her away.

"Lapis! Stop!" Connie yelled. Lapis gave a growl and had a dark look in her eye. Water slammed around Connie and made a cage around her.

"Stay out of this, Connie!" Lapis growled.

Peridot whimpered and got up. "Don't do this, Lapis!"

"I can win this time, I'm not a scared, confused child anymore and you know it!" Lapis growled, a water fist grabbing Peridot and slamming her down. "I will not let you just stand there and remind me of everything I hate about myself!"  
Lapis yelled. Peridot gave a yell as water chains grabbed her and Lapis walked up, tears streaming down her face. "I never wanted this, Peridot!" She cried, tears streaming down her her face. "I never wanted to be made!" A  
water fist grabbed Peridot by the throat and was choking her, going to poof her.

"Lapis…" Peridot whispered.

Lapis' face soften when she heard Connie struggling behind her.

The water collapsed from around her and Connie ran up to her. "Lapis! Please, stop it! I can't stand you hurting each other!" She cried.

They suddenly heard a crack and looked up to see the giant ax about to fall on them. Connie gasped and made a bubble that managed to cover her and Peridot. However, they saw Lapis look at them outside the bubble.

"Lapis…" Connie whispered. The gem turned and fled. "Lapis, stop! STOP!" Connie screamed as the ax fell on them.

When the dust cleared, Connie and Peridot exited the bubble, searching for their missing friend.

"Lapis! Where are you?!" Connie sobbed. She looked around and then up and saw Lapis sitting on high on a big rock, her head on her knees, staring wordlessly at Connie. The girl and Peridot ran to it.

"Go away, Connie… I'm evil, aren't you scared of me?" Lapis whispered.

Connie sat down and said, "Why would I be scared of the gem that… taught me to swim? And that clouds are just water? And who tucked me in and kissed me good night and sang to me before I fell asleep? Why would I be scared of that gem?"

"Because that gem was created by monsters, monster that wanted me to shatter you… kill you." Lapis whispered, tears silently flowing down her face.

"Peridot, help me." Connie sighed.

"What?! But you-" Connie stopped her and said, "Talk to her."

Peridot looked up at Lapis. "Lapis? … I had no idea you were so… angry about this."

"What?!" Lapis snapped. "You had no idea?! I was made to shatter you, and Jasper, and capture Yellow Diamond! You wished I was never made! Deep down, you think I'll hurt you again!"

"Not now, Lazuli." Peridot sighed. "You chose not to hurt us! You were just made by a gem… that did." Lapis gave a growl. "I… that's not what I meant, I mean… Lapis, you were the one, wonderful thing that came out of this  
revenge plot!" Peridot yelled. "I thought you were… proud of that."

Lapis looked down at her and slowly flew down. She was hesitant but hugged Peridot, tears streaming down her face and she let out a tiny sob.

Connie took Lapis' hand. "Let's go home."

Lapis walked to the warp pad after Connie was skipping away. She saw the shine of her gem and more tears came. She held them back and slowly looked at the sky, wondering if Homeworld remembered her betrayal to them, and her vow to protect the Crystal  
Temps, to protect Yellow Diamond.

* * *

 **I hope this gives you some info on Lapis' backstory in this au, but I'll exsplain it.I actually don't know what Lapis Lazuli's jobs are on Homeworld, I mean, I know YD mentioned Lapis terraforms, but I didn't have much to build up off of that. In this au, Lapis was custommade by Homeworld (including it's leaders)and placed on the battlefield where the Crystal Temps would find her, she was supposed to betray the gems after gaining their trust by acting innocent and adorable (I can't wait for Story for Steven if only to write little Lapis!) She was supposed to shatter Peridot and Jasper, then poof Yellow Diamond and give her to Homeworld. As you can see... Lapis didn't exsactly go by that plan once she warmed up to the Temps. Also, I feel like you do** _ **not**_ **want to get on Lapis' bad side because she can bring some damage. I'm almost certain she's stronger then Peridot and can at least keep Jasper chained up for... months.**


	41. Horror Club

It was night at the Bookstore and Sadie was locking the back door. "Lars! Hurry up, or I'll lock you in!" Sadie teased.

"Just a sec!" She heard Lars call. Sadie smiled and leaned against the wall. She felt someone watching and jolted in shock when she saw Connie standing right in front of her.

"Whoa, you ok? It's just me!" Connie laughed. "I'm on my way to a scary movie party, want to come?"

"Party? Who's throwing it?" Sadie asked.

"Ronaldo, Mr. Fryman's son." Connie grinned.

"Ugh! Him? Do what you want, Connie. I got better things to do than wax weird with Beach City's biggest weirdo." Sadie growled. "Ronaldo."

Lars suddenly came out and saw Connie. "Nice timing, Connie. Hey, should we head over to Ronaldo's?" Lars asked.

"I hope I don't get too scared!" Connie laughed, hugging Lars. Lars looked at Sadie then blushed. Lars and Connie started to walk away when Sadie ran after them. She then ran back and locked the door.

Sadie went between Lars and Connie and said, "Where's this thing at?"

Connie shivered and pointed to the lighthouse. "Up there…"

They were soon at the top of the hill and Ronaldo opened the door, wearing a costume. "Connie! Welcome to my Beach City horror club!" The teen said, laughing like a maniac.

"You mean comedy club?" Sadie laughed.

"S-Sadie?" Ronaldo gasped. His mask fell off and broke. "What are you doing here?"

He noticed Lars and Connie staring and said, "C-come in."

"I'm scared already." Sadie chuckled, elbowing Lars. Lars gave a high five to Ronaldo while walking in, "Nice to meet you."

Sadie walked in and then Connie. Ronaldo grabbed the girl's arm though and whispered, "You're friends with Sadie?"

"I'd like to think so." Connie smiled.

Inside, Ronaldo showed a copy of a DVD. "Our first film tonight is a rare classic that hardly needs introduction. "Evil Bear 2, Bearly Alive."

"Oh, man! That's one of the worst ones out there!" Sadie groaned. "Is it the stupid remake?"

"Of course it's not the remake!" Ronaldo huffed. "I have the original, a true fan would never accept less."

Sadie's eyes were stars. "Wait, what?! How did you get a copy of that! I want to see!" Sadie cried but Ronaldo already put in the disk.

"Will this be too much for Connie?" Lars asked.

"I can handle it!" Connie cried.

* * *

An hour later, Connie sat behind the couch, smiling. She heard the screams of the people and the evil laugh of the bear and Ronaldo peeked over at her. "Connie? Are you sure you can see the movie with the couch in your way?"

Ronaldo turned when he heard a certain line. "Oh, did I miss the part where you can see the sound guy?"

Suddenly, the lights flickered and then the power went out.

"No! That was the best part!" Sadie groaned.

"What's going on?" Lars asked.

"Probably just a fuse." Sadie shrugged, getting up.

Connie crawled out from behind the couch while Ronaldo said in a spooky voice with a flashlight, "Or maybe it's a gho-o-st?"

Lars gave a chuckle and stood. "Yeah, right."

"No, really." Ronaldo said, walking over to his desk. "As a skeptic of mortality, I've long suspected that this place might be haunted." He opened a drawer and revealed many folders and then pulled out a pendulum. "Spirit,

I beseech you!

"Oh jeez." Sadie groaned.

"We wish to make contact. Please, spirit, send us a sign." Ronaldo yelled. The pendulum suddenly started to sway back and forth, suddenly it got so strong, it flung out of the teen's hand and right into Sadie. She gave a "ow!"

style="margin: 0px; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; font-family: '.SF UI Text'; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);"

Ronaldo looked up and said, "That was a good sign! But could you send a couple more like that just to be sure?"

They heard indistinct whispering and gasped. Suddenly, the folders flung out and started swirling around them.

"That's — That's okay, spirit. You can rein it in a little!" Ronaldo laughed nervously. A coffee cup smashed next to his head and they gasped again.

"What is going on?!" Lars cried.

"How is it possible?" Connie whispered. A barrel smashed to the ground next to her and she cried out in fear.

"Look out!" Lars shouted, seeing another coffee cup coming at them. They all ducked and Lars saw a door. "Let's get out of here!"

They raced to the door and it suddenly slammed in their faces.

"It won't open!" Ronaldo cried.

They soon broke down the door and ran through, gasping for air.

"I'm so sorry! I had no idea there was this violent of a presence here." Ronaldo huffed.

"Um… that's fine." Connie shivered.

"Are you kidding me?! No, it's not!" Sadie cried. "It's not a ghost!"

"Who cares what it is?" Lars snapped. "We need to get out of here."

They all began to walk down the stairs, Sadie with Connie in the back and Ronaldo and Lars in the front.

"You looked pretty cool back there." Ronaldo said to Lars.

Lars looked up and smiled. "Really?"

"Yeah! You took charge." Ronaldo said.

"Thanks, man. When stuff gets hairy, I just keep my eyes forward, you know?"

"Once the civilians are safe, I'm gonna come back to investigate. If you wanted to help…" Ronaldo said. They both laughed.

Connie noticed Sadie was leaning forward, trying to hear them. "Um, are you okay?"

Sadie shushed her and covered her mouth.

They suddenly heard children's laughter and froze.

"What's that?" Lars whispered.

"Oh, it's nothing! We're all just hearing things and seeing things and feeling things that aren't real." Sadie growled, shoving between the new friends. They walked to the ajar door but it slammed open, knocking her back.

Scarecrows and bats started attempting to come through the door and Lars and Ronaldo attempted to shut the door. A scarecrow managed to slip past them and ran to Sadie, attempting to hurt her. Connie gasped and it ran after Sadie. Connie chased

after the scarecrow that was quick to grab Sadie by her shirt. Connie gave a yell and tackled the scarecrow, pulling it away. She shoved it outside, Lars and Ronaldo shoved the door closed.

"Have you ever seen a haunting this bad?" Sadie breathed to Lars.

Much to her annoyance, Ronaldo answered. "This is no run-of-the-mill haunting! It's a poltergeist." They all looked it him confused. He rolled his eyes. "A "ghost" only haunts a house. A poltergeist haunts a person! They're usually

attracted to the terrifying inner world of the emotionally disturbed." He shone his flashlightat Sadie and she frowned. She started to sweat.

"You think stuff is coming after me?! How can you listen to this...weird guy?!" Sadie stomped up to Ronaldo. "He practically lives in a haunted house. Don't you think maybe he had something to do with it?"

"I think you should stop being so rude." Connie frowned.

Sadie gave a groan of frustration and turned to Lars. "Lars, you're not a idiot."

"Hey!" Ronaldo and Connie cried, Connie thinking to herself, _I read more in an hour then she probably does in a day!_

"Do you believe all of this?!" Sadie asked, gripping Lars' shoulder.

"I…"

"All this stuff— They've gotta be doing it somehow. We've gotta ditch these guys. Come on." Lars' nervous smile faded and he slowly backed away. "I'm not ditching anyone."

"But what about me, huh?!" Sadie cried. "Lars! C'mon, you always—"

Suddenly, the floorboards started to glow red benteh Lars and opened up. Lars saw red light bellow him and cried out. Sadie gasped and reached her hand out but it was too late. It swallowed him up.

"Lars?!" Sadie gasped while Connie and Ronaldo ran to the floor with her, frantically looking.

"The spirit took him!" Ronaldo looked up and glared at Sadie. "You're gonna drag us all down with you! Don't you even care?!"

Sadie suddenly looked up when she heard Lars call her name and a hatch opened up.

"The basement…" Ronaldo whispered.

* * *

The teens walked down the steps that were illuminated by red light.

"I don't see him anywhere!" Sadie cried.

"Spirit, show yourself!" Ronaldo shouted, looking around.

Connie's hand grazed the wall and then she flattened her hand on it. "It's close…" She whispered. "I can feel it. It's hurting and... obsessed."

They then turned and saw a pulsing flesh-like structure which had Sadie's name carved in it.

"It should have been you." Ronaldo hissed, glaring at Sadie. Sadie slowly backed away. "It took him, but it should've been you, Sadie!"

Connie attempted to push the two apart. "Whoa. H-hold on, Ronaldo."

Suddenly, the thing pulsed louder, and louder. A mouth formed and Ronaldo grabbed Sadie.

"Put me down!" Sadie cried.

Connie ran in front of Ronaldo, clear worry in her face. "Wait! Stop! What are you doing?"

Ronaldo ignored her, raising Sadie above his head. "Spirit, I deliver the package of darkness! Return to us Lars!"

The mouth opened wider.

"Please! Ronaldo, we used to be friends!" Sadie cried.

"And you threw me away!" Ronaldo yelled, throwing Sadie into the monster.

Connie took no time thinking, just reacted. She ran into the mouth, ignoring Ronaldo yelling, "Connie, no! She's not worth it!"

"Why does everything bad happen to me?" Sadie groaned. Connie grabbed her wrist and tried to get them out but the monster's sharp teeth were only held up by a pipe that soon broke. Connie and Sadie gasped and Ronaldo shielded his

eyes.

Connie made a bubble around her and Sadie and they flung out, hitting the ground with grunts.

The monster exploded, leaving in the ruble Lars and a blue gem.

"Lars!" They all gasped.

Connie noticed the gem and picked it up. It glowed brightly, making the people shield their eyes.

Lars stood and watched the gem project a young boy with curly blond hair and glasses walking in the Lighthouse with a box.

"This is the perfect clubhouse for the Beach City Explorer Club!" The boy laughed.

A young girl with light blond hair grinned. "Secret clubhouse, right, Ronnie?" The girl made zipping motions and the boy laughed.

Connie giggled a little and Sadie gave a groan.

"Sadie, you're a riot!"

They all were surprised and saw the boy must've been Ronaldo.

Young Ronaldo was about to take a picture when he heard scraping. He turned to see young Sadie carving her name in the wall. Sadie blushed and laughed. "Just carving our names in! Cool, huh?"

Suddenly, the house rumbled. Young Sadie frowned and a board hit the girl in the face. Ronaldo snapped a picture and smiled. "Holy smokes! The clubhouse is possessed!"

Young Sadie gave a groan and Ronaldo ran up. He showed her the picture of her getting hit in the face. "When you turn on the TV tomorrow, this is what's gonna be on every station!"

Sadie started to sweat as she held the photo. "B-b-but—But you said this was secret!" She stuttered.

"Our first paranormal discovery! We're gonna take on the world together!" Ronaldo whispered, eyes shinning. Sadie frowned. She started to tearing herself out.

"No! What are you doing?!" Young Ronaldo cried, running over. "No, no, no, no, no!"

"I'm just tearing myself out." Sadie struggled out.

"Stop!" Ronaldo grabbed her wrist and took the photo away. It fell apart in his hands. "What'd you do? Oh!" Ronaldo moaned softly.

"Oh, come on. Ronnie, you know I can't let people see me like that." Sadie whispered.

"What?! What's the matter with you?!" Ronaldo yelled, pushing Sadie. "Don't you know how important this was?!"

Sadie shoved him back, clearly a tomboy.

"Aah! Why do you care so much about what other people think?!"

"You wouldn't say that if you knew what other people say about you!" She knocked him down and ran away.

Young Ronaldo looked up. "Sadie?"

The projection went back in the gem and Connie petted it in comfort. "Shh… It's okay, I got you. When you were stuck in the wall, was the house like your body? You must have felt like you were under attack back when Sadie carved her name

in you.."

"Can I see that?" Ronaldo whispered.

"Uh, sorry." Connie blushed, bubbling the gem away. "We should let it rest."

"So, all that lashing out was just from feeling hurt and trapped for so long…" Lars murmured.

"I didn't mean to rip it up, okay? You can stop talking about me now." Sadie blushed.

"Oh, Lars, are you okay?" Ronaldo asked.

Lars smiled. "Uh, yeah. I'm fine."

"Oh, yeah." Sadie chuckled. "We were both worried about— I mean, I ran down here faster."

"Can we get out of here?" Lars asked.

"Lars, you can come with me. I think these two have a lot to talk about." Connie smiled.

"I bet." Lars laughed.

The two past friends watched them walk upstairs and looked at each other.


	42. Winter Forecast

Connie and Steven were sitting together in Connie's house, roasting marshmallows on the fire. Connie took hers away, a perfect golden brown.

"Whoa. How'd you do that?" Steven gasped.

Connie laughed. "I've had a lot of practice… Do you know what makes marshmallows so good?"

Steven frowned and thought about it. "I don't know..."

"Now that I think about it… probably the animal by-products…" Connie muttered.

"You mean… like poop?" Steven asked, disgusted.

"No. Stuff like hooves, bone marrow, collagen... and lots of sugar and corn syrup." Connie grinned.

"CORN SUGAR!" Steven yelled.

Connie giggled. "Sugar syrup!" She thrust many marshmallows in her mouth. "Bone marrow!"

The children laughed together. Suddenly, Steven's phone rang and he picked it up.

"Hello Daddio!" Steven laughed.

"Steven! Have you heard the news?!" Connie heard Greg cry.

"No…" Steven whispered.

Greg replied with a sigh, "Well, there's a snowstorm on its way to Beach City, and I don't want you getting snowed in. You need to get a ride home."

"Okay… I'll be home soon." Steven hung up and glanced at Connie with disappointment. "Looks like I gotta get going."

"Oh, no…" Connie groaned.

"There's a snowstorm coming through, and my dad doesn't want me getting stuck here." Steven shrugged.

"Wouldn't it be fun if we got snowed in together?" Connie whispered softly.

"We could stay up all night and watch the snowfall!" Steven cried.

They smiled at each other until Jasper, Lapis, and Peridot walked in.

"Hey kids." Jasper waved.

Lapis smiled. "You two having fun?"

"Yes. But Steven's gotta getting going soon, a snowstorm's coming." Connie sighed.

"Maybe the storm will miss us. Sometimes the forecast is completely wrong." Steven smiled hopefully.

"You kidding, I've seen all the signs for a storm, it's totally gonna be a big one." Jasper said, crossing her arms.

"I'd trust her." Peridot said, crossing her arms.

Connie smiled and whispered to Steven, "Jasper's really good at predicting things…"

"Now, get over to Doug's." Jasper said.

"Wait—We can't go yet. I've got to show you this TubeTube video really quick." Connie said to Steven.

"Connie…" Jasper grunted.

"It's only, like, one minute long!" Connie protested.

"I know you don't want to go, but you have to make the right choice." Jasper smirked.

* * *

Connie laughed as snow hit her in front of the Police Station.

"I got you! I got you!" Steven laughed.

Doug walked over and they stopped playing. "You kids ready?"

"Wait… Dad, you aren't… driving us, are you?" Connie asked, grabbing Steven and shoving a snowball into his face. He laughed.

"Of course I am! I am a responsible parent and I want Greg never to forget that!" Doug huffed.

"We should walk." Connie immediately said. Her father was horrible at driving in snowstorms. "Um, you might want to change out of that sweatshirt though…"

"But it's cherries, honey. Everybody likes cherries." Doug saw his daughter shake her head. "Okay, I see your point. Just give me a second to change."

Doug went in and out of the Police Station, showing his sweaters that he had packed in his car. The kids procrastinated and shook their head to all of them. Doug finally came out in a disco outfit.

"That's the best outfit I've ever seen." Steven smiled. Connie frowned but Doug was quick to accept it. "Come on! Into the car."

* * *

Connie was very nervous in the car, knowing her father wasn't the best in snowstorms.

The snow started to fall faster and Doug turned on the heater. "It's really starting to-" He suddenly started to swerve and Connie screamed as they ran into a snow drift.

"What… are we gonna do now?" Steven asked, trembling.

"Um… we're gonna walk, a responsible parent doesn't let two kids strand themselves in a van in the middle of nowhere."

They walked all the way to Greg's van.

Connie rapidly knocked on the van and Greg opened it.

"Hey Dad…" Steven shivered.

"Hello, Mr. DeMayo." Connie sneezed.

"Sorry we're late, Greg." Doug whispered.

"Steven! Do you know what time it is?!" Greg cried, taking the boy in the back of the van.

Greg glared at Doug and Connie once Steven had been wrapped up. "I think you know where the… exit is, since you're standing in front of it."

Connie couldn't help but notice that it was very small in the van, and that the heater seemed broken down… Steven couldn't live here, could he? Her father lived in a house in Beach City, she thought Steven and Greg had too…

"I kind of crashed my ride…" Doug muttered.

Greg blushed and looked at the van. "Um… I-I know there isn't much room, but… I'm sure I can rustle up something."

Connie was in the car again, not noticing that she had seemed to go back in time…

"We had better start walking." Doug sighed.

"Dad! No! We should stay put. It'll be way safer this way." Connie insisted.

"My Dad would want me to keep safe…" Steven said.

"I can't argue with safety." Doug smiled.

Connie grinned. "It'll be like camping!"

"But in cozy seats!" Steven laughed.

They stayed there for a while, Connie and Steven eating granola bars Doug had in the car for dinner.

"Thanks for dinner, Doug." Steven grinned, eating a bar.

Connie smiled and picked up her violin, which she had left from an earlier practice session. She smiled playing a note. "Any requests?"

"How 'bout a song about a snack monster! That loves… animal-byproducts!" Steven laughed, stuffing a waffle in his mouth making Connie giggle. Doug rolled his eyes.

Steven's phone suddenly rang and he picked it up. "Dad?"

"Steven! Are you still at Connie's? I'm driving up into Beach City now so start getting ready." Greg said.

"Dad! Don't! It's really bad out here!" Steven cried.

Connie glanced up. "I see some headlights. Is that him?"

They all looked and saw Greg's van coming straight to them!

"Dad! Stop the van! You're coming straight for  
us!" Steven yelled. The van crashed.

* * *

Connie and Steven were playing in the snow again and Connie saw her Dad coming with the keys.

"Steven, come on! We can't let my Dad drive!" Connie cried. She ran to her father and snatched the keys away. She chucked them away into the snow and grabbed Steven's hand, pulling him away.

"Let's go back to my place." Connie panted, running.

"But my dad—" Steven started. Connie stop running and put her hands on his shoulders.

"No, Steven! You have to listen to me! If we leave Beach City in my Dad's car, bad things can happen in a snowstorm!"

Steven blinked then pulled out his phone. "Um... okay. Let me just call my dad and tell him." They were still running when Greg picked up. "Hey Dad! I'm staying over at Connie's tonight!"

"What? Well… I suppose it is safer there…" Greg thought. "Okay, buddy, I'll see you in the morning, stay safe and warm!"

"Thanks! Bye!" Steven yelled.

They reached the house and saw Jasper, Lapis and Peridot in a triangular shape on the warp pad surrounding the Shooting Star, an artifact they had gotten a while ago.

"Hold it steady. We have to send this to the Galaxy Warp without warping ourselves, then we'd be dead." Jasper muttered.

"This is too risky." Lapis murmured.

"It might be, but this is one of our last resorts, Lazuli." Peridot said through gritted teeth.

"If the shooting star goes off mid-warp, it could explode forever in warp space. And even if we do manage to destroy the entire Galaxy Warp, they could still find another way to get here." Lapis whispered, shaking.

"Are you guys okay?" Connie gasped.

Lapis gasped and turned away in shock, losing her hold on the star. "Connie?!"

"Lapis! No!" Jasper yelled. But it was too late. The star hit the warp pad…

"AND THEN BOOM! We would die." Peridot finished Jasper's story.

"Pretty much." Jasper shrugged..

Connie and Steven stared in amazement. She had just predicted three scenarios that all seemed possible.

"Well… there was some good things." Connie smiled. "But mostly bad."

Connie looked at Steven. "I have a idea."

* * *

Later that night, they had taken Steven over to Greg's. However, they realized the van was no place for them to sleep in such a storm. So, they invited them to Connie's house that night.

Connie had snuck downstairs in her nightgown and motioned for Steven to come up into her room. They then sat on her bed, watching the snow fall together, as they had wanted. 


	43. Maximum Capacity

Connie and Doug were walking to the storage lot carrying a cardboard police man version of Doug.

"I really like the ones that shoot up kind of spirally with the long tails." Connie said, talking about fireworks with her father.

"Connie, I'm slipping. Hold that end up a little more." Doug said.

Connie saw she had gotten distracted. She got it back up. "Oh, sorry."

"That's okay." Doug chuckled. "I'm not sure the "Summer Safety" sign was that effective anyway. But I can't bring myself to throw myself out. Might as well store it for the rest of the winter."

Connie smiled. "So, which firework is your favorite, Dad?"

"Well… I just like watching them together with you, pumpkin." Doug beamed.

"Yeah, me too! I can't wait for New Year's Eve tomorrow…. It's been a whole year!" Connie cried, blushing.

"It sure has!" Doug grinned, opening the storage unit. He saw it was overflowing with junk and frowned. He attempted to find a place for hose to go and eventually put it around the neck of a flamingo lawn ornament.

The garage started to rumble and it all spilled out. The father and daughter gasped together. "Whoa!"

"I haven't really cleared this place out since your mom—" Doug coughed. "Maybe this is good timing! A new year coming up... I should just get rid of all this stuff."

Connie nodded and picked up a sweater and jacket. "I can take these off your hands!"

"That's a start," Doug grinned. "but I'll need a little more help than that and this guy's not gonna do it." He pointed to his cardboard self. He scratched his head. "Who would organize a mess this big though?"

Connie thought for a moment and then gasped. "Ah! I know just the Gem!"

A few minutes later, Connie stood beside the gem.

"Lapis ishere!" Connie cried.

"Um… hi Doug." Lapis blushed, biting her lip.

Doug blinked. "Oh. I thought you meant Peridot."

"No!" Connie giggled. "I'm the gem to help organize, and Lapis is here to help me move stuff."

"I can do it real quick." Lapis smirked. Water rose from behind her and Doug realized what she was going to do.

"Whoa! No! Don't flood the place!" Doug cried. "That is totally impractical!"

"Lapis, that's not what we planned." Connie said.

"But I thought you wanted to get rid of _all_ of the junk." Lapis said, water falling as she crossed her arms.

"Not all of it." Doug muttered.

Lapis rolled her eyes, walked up to Doug and smiled, "I've seen your junk before."

"We need to find some way to organize all of this…" Connie murmured, walking among the junk.

Like lighting, Lapis had grabbed three boxes labeled keep, sell, and burn.

"Is this ok, Connie?" Lapis asked. "See, keep, sell, burn!"

"Burn?" Doug and Connie whispered apprehensively.

"What are you afraid of?" Lapis asked.

Doug chuckled. "Um, fire?"

The gem gave a snort, waving it aside. "I can stop that easily."

She, Connie, and Doug looked around and Lapis picked up a boot, racket, and checkerboard. "Hm, this all looks cool. We should definitely keep these things."The gem grinned.

Doug saw her attempt put the things into the keep box and ran up, "Hold on. Aren't we supposed to be throwing stuff away?"

Lapis frowned, and dropped the things in the box. "But all these things look so interesting. Peri might like them for her gadgets. I mean, like,"

"BOOKS?! Oh my goodness! There's books!" Connie squealed, running to a cardboard box full of them.

"Heh, you can have some if you want." Doug smiled, walking up. He then frowned, "Wait, the gems grounded you from books for a thousand years, didn't they?"

Lapis laughed, "That only lasted a day. Connie was sobbing all night, we had to give in. She's grounded from T.V now…. for a thousand years."

"Can I have these?" Connie begged.

"Uh, hold on." Doug said, quick to stop her from snatching them up. "Let me see some of those first. Yeah, I think you'll like this one and this one, and, uh, maybe we'll save this one for when you're a little older." He blushed,  
taking out a book called, 'Passions of Xanxor'.

Connie soon pushed the box of books outside. While Lapis found a singing fish screwed to a board. "Aw, poor thing!" She cried.

"Oh, that's not a real fish, Lapis." Connie assured her.

"Thank goodness." Lapis smiled, putting it down. She saw Doug place a dumbbell in the sell box and she frowned.

"Hey, don't you want to get manly and strong?" Lapis laughed, shapeshifting into her dancing disguise, The Water Witch.

Doug rolled his eyes at her shapeshifting and watchedLapis twirl Connie around. "Come on, Lapis. Let's be serious here." He said. He then noticed a broken picture of him and Yellow Diamond. "Oh, no. How did this happen?"

Connie walked up. She saw the photo and felt immediate guilt. _She_ had happened. "A picture of you and my mother…"

They didn't notice Lapis peeking over Connie's shoulder. Her beam faded slowly, seeing the photo. She then blushed angrily and turned away.

"Ah, it's- it's okay. It's just the frame." Doug sighed, putting the picture down.

Lapis was rummaging through some things and gasped. "Doug! Check this out!"

"Is it a deed to my uncle's mansion?" Doug joked.

Lapis laughed and laid out a stack of VHS tapes neatly. "Even better."

"Is that…" Doug picked up the tapes. "Lit'l Housekeeper?" He hugged them to his chest. "Oh, where have you been all these years?!"

" _Lit'l Housekeeper, that's you_!" Lapis sang softly, with a wistful smile.

"Um, what's Lit'l Housekeeper?" Connie asked, looking between the two.

"Connie, we used to watch these all the time when you were little. You'll like it, I promise!" Doug said, plugging in a tv and putting in a tape.

"I-I'm still grounded from T.V, remember?" Connie cried.

Lapis glanced back at her with a look of sympathy. "Oh, I forgot all about that… Can we just watch one? For old time's sake? Then, we won't watch any more, does that sound ok?"

Connie thought for a moment, if it was just one…

She nodded.

Lapis grinned gratefully and fell back, pressing play.

Connie looked away, trying not to watch. She slowly peeked and saw the theme song playing.

A baby girl was dropped off on a masion step and she knocked on the door. " _An orphaned girl with sass and pep. Got dropped off on our mansion step, Li'l Housekeeper, Li'l Housekeeper,_ " A female voice sang as the baby leapt  
into the arms of the father and kissed him. The rest of the family, a mother and son looked surprised, but happy. " _We washed her face of dirt and leaves,_

 _And now she works here as our Jeeves, Li'l Housekeeper, Li'l Housekeeper,_ " The tiny girl already looked grown, despite being a child. She did various tasks for the family as the actors' names were displayed. " _Oh, littlest housekeeper,_

 _Oh, you're the girl who keeps our hearts,So mop the floor and dust the shelves. And teach us lessons 'bout ourselves, Li'l Housekeeper, Li'l Housekeeper, that's you!_ " The girl looked at the screen and said the main slogan, "You people  
have too much money!" She winked.

Connie couldn't help but want to watch more, but looked away, knowing she was grounded. "Shouldn't we be cleaning the storage unit, please?"

Lapis ignored her and gasped. "Oh! This is the pilot? Hm, they didn't even have the dog yet!"

"They just had a cat named 'Money'!" Doug laughed. Lapis joined in and was blushing.

Connie peeked over the couch angrily at them.

"Connie, it's getting late." Doug said, seeing Lapis look worried that Connie wasn't having as much fun as they were. "Why don't we just call it a day? We can pick this up again tomorrow, pumpkin."

Connie got up and ran off, satisfied that she would no longer be tortured. "Ok, Dad. See you tomorrow!"

* * *

The next morning, Connie happily walked to the fry shop. She saw her friend Peedee working the fryer.

"Morning! I'll take two hashbrowns, please." Connie said.

"Sure." Peedee nodded. He turned and called back into the shop, "Ronaldo! Can I get a double order of hash browns?"

"My dad and I got a big day cleaning the storage unit. Have to start the year off right, you know?" Connie smiled.

Peedee turned and grinned, "Practical as always! My dad and I are restocking all the condiments. I get to clean the bottles. We're supposed to wash them twice, but I always wash them three times. Odd numbers just feel cleaner."

Connie nodded in agreement. "I completely agree…. Oh! Are you going to the New Year's fireworks tonight?"

"Yeah! It's supposed to be," Peedee deepened his voice. "pretty darn spectacular"! Mayor Dewey's been setting up all morning. There are gonna be blue ones! I love the blue ones."

"It's gonna be incredible." Connie grinned, taking her order.

* * *

Connie walked into the storage unit.

"Guys? Dad?" Connie called.

Lapis and Doug were still watching Lit'l Housekeeper.

"I'll look like a fool if I show up to school on just one alligator!" The teenage boy cried on the TV.

"You people have too much money!" Lit'l Housekeeper sighed.

Lapis and Doug laughed. "What a surprise. Li'l Housekeeper does it again." Lapis laughed.

"You can always count on Li'l H." Doug grinned.

Lapis glanced at Doug and whispered, "Yeah. Everything's always right with her. One more?"

"Oh yeah!" Doug cried.

"Hey!" Connie yelled, beside them.

"Oh, Connie! What are you doing coming over so late?" Doug asked.

Connie blinked and frowned, "It's... morning."

"Oh, wow. I guess we lost track of the time." Doug groaned.

Connie gave a groan. "You never stopped watching "Li'l Housekeeper"?! Ugh!"

"When you get to season three, it really starts getting good. That's when the uptight neighbors, the Richingtons, move next-door." Lapis grinned. "They're a riot."

"Well, I never!" Cried a man on the TV.

"Well, I always!" The little Housekeeper retorted.

Connie frowned, looking at her bag of food and tried to get them up, "Well, you want to get started?"

"Oh, yeah." Doug groaned, getting up.

Lapis grabbed his arm in desperation. "This part is so good!"

A horse neighed on the tv and the audience laughed.

"I guess the storage unit can wait…" Connie muttered, setting the bag of hashbrowns in the floor.

"Yeah, honey. That sounds like a good idea." Doug said, intranced in the TV.

Lapis saw the bag of food and looked up at Connie. "Did you bring these for us?"

Connie blushed, not wanting to make her feel awkward. "Um, yeah."

"Thank you, Connie!" Lapis beamed, picking up the bag and sharing with Doug.

"Want to just meet at the fireworks?" Connie suggested.

"Sure." Doug muttered.

"Okay. I'll see you there."

* * *

On the beach, people had gathered for the fireworks display.

Connie gave Jasper the jacket and Peridot the sweater she had got from her Dad.

"So… I wear these… 'clothes', like this?" Peridot asked, picking at the sweater.

"Perfect. You guys look amazing." Connie smiled in her blue sweater dress, red scarf, and white boots. She handed out pots and pans and exsplained, "Here are some pots and pans. We got to make lots of noise. Dad and I do this every  
year. I brought some for Lapis, too. They should be here any second." Connie sat down next to Peridot.

"Why is Lazuli coming with your father?" Peri asked, looking at Connie with concern. "Unless… Oh my stars, are they hanging out again?!" She gasped.

"What do you mean, "again"?" Connie asked, cocking her head.

Jasper took her head in her hands. "I swear, if they're watching that stupid show again, I'll-"

"Lit'l Housekeeper?" Connie asked, feeling she knew what she meant.

Peridot gave a chuckle. "Wow. They are! I never thought Lazuli would come out, watching that dumb show! I was getting worried she'd never come and watch Camp Pining Hearts with me again, until…" She trailed off.

"Until… what?" Connie whispered.

Peridot gave a frown. "Even I don't know why, one day, they just stopped."

Connie was startled as fireworks flew off at midnight. She gripped her pan and Peridot gave a yell, "Yay! New… stuff!" She turned to Connie. "I'm doing excellent, aren't I."

"No, you're not." Jasper said, standing up. "YES! NEW YEAR, LET'S DO THIS!" She yelled, shaking the ground.

* * *

Connie snuck off to the storage lot and hid behind the couch. Doug heard the fireworks and frowned, "What's that?" He gasped and stood. "I'm missing the fireworks! It's past midnight! How did I get so sucked into this show again?  
It's like everything else just disappears!" He gave a groan, about to leave.

Lapis glanced up and grabbed Doug's sleeve in desperation. "No!"

He glanced at her and she blushed.

"W-We're having a great time! Look. I have the two part Hawaii special!" Lapis smiled, putting in the VCR.

"But Connie really wanted me to do New Year's." Doug sighed, trying get away.

Lapis frowned, getting up and grabbing his arm again. "She'll be fine. If I thought Connie would be upset… I would've left long ago."

Connie frowned. Something was up…

"I wanted to be there!" Doug cried.

Lapis slid in front of him, holding her hands out. "It would have been like this." She shapeshifted into Connie. "Oh! Dad, Dad, fireworks!" Lapis cried, giggling in Connie's voice. "Dad, come on! Now let's watch some Li'l  
Housekeeper, please?!"

"Lapis, you know how I feel about shape-shifting." Doug sighed, backing away from the gem who looked so much like his daughter.

Lapis frowned and shapeshifted back to herself. "Sorry… I was trying to cheer you up…"

She suddenly shapeshifted into Doug. "I forgot, you're so sensitive." Lapis growled angrily, leaning against him.

"Please, stop this." Doug whispered, turning away. "Don't get upset! I have to be there for daughter, you always want to be there too."

Lapis shape-shifted back to herself, cheeks puffed in anger. "Oh, of course I do! But, before Connie, before YOU, I had someone who was always there for me!" Doug thought he saw tears in her eyes.

"Don't do this, Lapis. I'm begging you." Doug pleaded.

"I bet you'd stay for her." Lapis hissed, gem glowing.

"No, don't do this!" Doug cried, looking away.

"What?" Lapis smirked, a dark look in her eyes. "This?"

She shape-shifted into his lost lover and Doug had covered his line of sight.

"Turn around, do it." Lapis growled, walking to him.

"I know you're doing it! I want to be friends again. I really do. But I can't let you do this to me again!" Doug said, pained.

Connie couldn't stand for this anymore. She ran up and leapt onto the couch. "STOP!"

Lapis turned, still in Yellow Diamond's form, Connie's mother. Lapis looked shocked, mortified at what she had done. Connie's eyes widened in horror, shocked. She gave a gasp and quickly slammed her eyes shut. How… How could Lapis do this?! How  
could Lapis hurt her?! She knew her mother was always something that made her feel insecure!

Lapis shapeshifted back into her real self, the TV had cut to static. "Connie…"

"What are you two doing?!" Connie yelled. "I get it. It's hard to deal with stuff from the past. You want to put it off because there's tons of it and it's really heavy and it means a lot to you, so it's hard to let anything go.  
But you got to." The girl suddenly picked up a cat carrier. "Because this thing is full! Seriously, when did you even have a cat?!" She threw the thing and broke it.

Lapis looked at the girl with wide eyes. She shut them in devastation, and flew out.

* * *

The next day, Connie and Doug walked up to the storage unit.

"Okay. We're finishing this today." Doug promised.

"Right." Connie said. She looked up and saw Peridot come out of the unit with a box and Connie cocked her head. "Peri?"

"Greetings. Nice of you to join us." Peridot smirked playfully. Doug walked over and saw the whole compartment was empty. Jasper carrried many, many boxes out.

"I don't believe it!" Doug cried. Connie gave a gasp in wonder.

"I'm so sorry about the mess." Doug blushed.

"Was this... your idea?" Connie asked Peridot.

"No." Peridot frowned. "Why would I be the one to think of helping… him."

"It was Lapis' idea." Jasper said.

They saw Lapis fly out slowly, looking sad. She held a single box labeled 'keep'.

She saw Doug and landed, walking up to him. She blushed. "I-I just thought we could take all this stuff back to the temple... It can fit in my room, I'll dry some things off, get it nice and organized for you… That way, you don't have to throw  
anything away." She gave the box to Doug, not looking at it. "But— But you can keep this." She shyly ran back to the gems

Doug opened the box and took put the picture of him and Yellow. It was in a new frame. He and Connie smiled at each other. He looked up and saw Lapis fiddling with the edge of her dress. "Thank you, Lapis."

Lapis looked up and gave a tiny nod. She then looked at Connie. "I'm so sorry… I will never regret you coming into my life and will forever cherish it, I hope you know that."

Connie gave a small smile. "Of course I do."

Doug walked up and closed the storage unit for the last time...

* * *

 **I feel like Lapis would be more caring towards Connie, don't get me wrong, Amethyst was good in this episode, but I feel Lapis expresses her feelings, including guilt more often. Also, the next episode had more Pearl! I love writing the Crystal Gems as villains, but I especially love writing Pearl, she has a few secrets about her mission left to share.**

 ****

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	44. Marble Madness

"Can I look yet?" Connie asked, her hands covering her eyes.

Steven smiled, taking out a DVD. "Okay…"

Connie uncovered her eyes. "Oh! Thanks Steven! What a funny cover!" She laughed, looking at crying food.

"It's my favorite series!" Steven explained. "It's these tons of best friends, that are all food! They protect their home, the fridge, from humans, so they can't get eaten! That's why they're crying all the time! They're fearing

for their lives!" Steven cried.

Connie blinked. "I… I thought it was a comedy… and a kid's show."

"It is!" Steven cried. "Here, I'll read the description." He flipped it over. "In a world where it's eat, or run, the Crying Breakfast Friends, Pear, Spoon, Strawberry, Biscuit and many more must protect themselves,

their home, and thier children from the rumbling of-"

A sudden shake filled the air and led Connie to look up at the sky with worry. Steven grinned. "This is so cool! Thanks random quake! You're making this more believable!"

Connie slowly turned back.

"As I was saying, the rumbling of the evil human's stomach! Together, they will laugh, and mostly cry, discovering the secrets of the fridge before-"

Suddenly, something massive came out from the sand! It was a massive robonoid, like the ones Pearl had, but bigger.

The older Crystal Temps ran out.

"What was that?!" Lapis cried.

Connie watched it grow legs and yelled, "It's a massive robonoid!"

"Whoa." Steven whispered under his breath.

The robot went towards them but Jasper leapt out and held it back with her bare hands. "Lapis! Peri!"

Lapis and Peridot gave war cries as they swiftly leapt onto the roboniod with all their strength.

When the smoke cleared, Connie had made a bubble around her and Steven. She looked at Steven who was grinning.

"Are… you okay?" Connie asked.

"I love hanging out at your place." He whispered.

"Do you think-" Connie started, looking at Peridot.

"it's one of Pearl's machines? Clearly." Peridot huffed. "Hm, it's very big this time."

"And very gooey…" Lapis said, wiping the goo off her.

Peridot frowned. "Lapis, be careful. We still don't know what these robots are."

The gem gave a small nod. "I'm just going to clean off." Water came from the ocean and went around her, washing her off.

"Lapis! I needed to analyze that!" Peridot cried.

Lapis blushed. "Oh."

"You'll pay for this!" Peridot screeched, running after her.

"Pearl. Is that the Gem you told me about? The bad one that's trying to come to Earth?" Steven asked, watching Lapis fly where Peri couldn't get her.

Connie nodded. "Yeah. We stopped her before but, I guess she can still shoot stuff here from space…."

She walked over to Jasper and bit her lip. "What do you think it was here to do?"

Jasper crossed her arms. "We killed it. That's all that matters." She kicked parts aside.

Connie gave a nod.

Lapis suddenly landed beside Jasper and hugged her. "Jasper, save me from Peridot!"

Peridot ran up to her but Jasper grabbed her collar and pulled her into a firm choke hold that fazed into a hug.

* * *

Greg was in the van when Connie called. Steven was practicing his ukulele outside so his father took the cellphone out to him. "It's Connie Universe." Greg gave a chuckle. "What a cool last name."

Steven grinned and dropped the instrument immediately. He took the phone and answered. "Hi, Connie! What's up? Have you watched more of Crying Breakfast Friends?!"

Connie nodded excitedly. "Yes! And-"

Steven interrupted, so excited. "YES! Isn't it so good?! Where are you at?"

Connie grinned. "I finished season one you gave me, and I'm now on… season 5."

Steven gave a cry. "Don't say any-!"

"Dinner! Dinner came BACK. I didn't see that coming! And the way Strawberry's life was on the line, and Potatos took her, and then Pear had to save her by giving himself up to Dinner,that was so heart wrenching!" Connie cried.

"I haven't seen Season 5…" Steven whispered blankly.

Connie nearly dropped the phone while the warp pad activated.

The gems warped in.

Lapis suddenly gave a shake. "Whoa. One of those robonoid entered the ocean at… Mask Island."

"Steven, I'm sorry, I gotta go, I'll call you back!" Connie cried, running to the warp.

They warped to the island.

* * *

"It's looking for the warp…" Peridot growled.

"Kill it!" Jasper yelled.

The gems gave a war cry as they destroyed it.

"What are these things trying to do?" Connie cried.

"For once, none of us know." Peridot sighed.

"It's not trying to do anything now!" Jasper growled, snapping a piece over her knees.

* * *

Steven and Connie were talking over the phone again.

"Now that you've got caught up, who's your favorite character? Mine's Strawberry." Connie said.

"Mine's Pear! He reminds me of myself." Steven replied.

Connie's smiled faded slowly when she rembered something. "Steven, I can't keep this from you, I binged the whole season six. I have a problem."

"CONNIE! NO!" Steven cried, falling back.

There was a sudden rumbling. Connie glanced up.

"Another marble thingy?" Steven assumed weakly.

"Yeah." Connie sighed, seeing the gems warp in.

Lapis gave a yawn. "Oh, this is the fitfh one this week! This needs to stop! They won't give in!"

"None have gone to the desert yet! Let's check there!" Jasper said. They warped away

"Talk later!" Connie cried. She dropped the phone and ran.

* * *

Connie warped to the desert and saw Peridot was screeching as she slammed her metal pole in the robot while Lapis had frozen it in water. Lapis and Jasper were sitting on the ground, watching Peri take out her anger. The gem transformed the into

a different weapon each time, trying to break it. "Clod! Clod! Clod! Stop! Coming! Here! CLOD!"

"You're doing great, Peri." Lapis sighed.

Connie ran up and called. "Guys?"

They turned. She gave a sigh. "How many more of these things are you gonna have to fight?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Peridot suddenly sobbed, sliding off.

"That's okay - We'll have to learn." Connie smiled weakly. "I have you guys to tell me about tell me about Gem stuff, Steven can tell me about not spoiling people, and Dad tells me his weird Dad jokes."

Lapis gave a groan. "But nobody knows what these things are here to do…."

Connie blinked in surprise, realizing something. "Well - it probably does." She pointed to the things.

"It's clear, Connie's lost her mind! We're gonna die!" Peridot cried.

"We could follow it and see where it goes." Connie continued.

"But, that's so dangerous…" Lapis said before Peridot popped up beside her. "Who knows what could go wrong?"

"We can't keep fighting these things forever." Jasper sighed. Then she looked up. "Well, we can...but I don't want to. Let's do it Connie's way."

"Yes!" Connie cried.

Lapis started shaking uncontrollably until Jasper grabbed her arm and gave a reassuring smile. "You're safe. We gotta do this."

Lapis nodded and flew on the thing while the rest leapt on.

The water unfroze, letting it go.

"Okay, little guy, let's go!" Connie said. The thing started and the Temps held on tight. It went to the warp pad and warped away with them still on.

* * *

When the flashes of light disappeared, Connie saw she was in a bare, dry place. It was all rocks, and there were holes upon holes. "What is this place?" She whispered.

"The Prime Kindergarten…" Peridot breathed.

Connie glanced at Jasper and whispered, "You were made here?"

Jasper shook her head. "I was made at the Beta Kindergarten, it's much smaller than this…"

"This site has been damaged enough by the Gems that were incubated here 6,000 years ago… It's up to something bad." Peridot murmured.

"We don't even know what it's doing here. Can't we just... see where it wants to go?" Connie pleaded.

Peridot glanced at Jasper.

"Connie's way." Jasper said stubbornly.

The robonoid suddenly leapt off the warp pad.

"What does this clod want?" Peridot groaned.

Connie smiled. "It probably wants to see where Jasper was almost made!"

"It should mind its own business." Jasper muttered.

"I… don't like this, Connie." Lapis whispered, worried.

"Lazuli is correct." Peridot said. "We should leave."

"But-" The machine stopped and Connie glanced down. "Huh?"

"Something's happening." Jasper whispered. She grabbed the rest of the Temps and leapt off.

The Plug Robonoid suddenly opened a triangular shape in the ground. It made the shape and went in the hole. Connie's eyes were diamonds as she giggled excitedly. She looked at the gems and grinned. "See? Come on! Something cool could be down

there!" Connie ran and leapt in the hole, after the elevator. The others gave a cry and leapt in after the girl.

They landed on the platform where Connie already stood.

Peridot traced her finger over a white line on the wall. "What is this place?"

They slowly got off and the triangle lifted up. It's bottom gave a single drip and it made a small robonoid.

Connie saw a platform that looked similar to one she had seen before… She had put her hand on one, activating a secret armory Lion had taken her and Steven to. Before she could see the symbol, the robonoid crawled on it and formed a hand, activating  
/the room and a screen. The monitor made static noises but suddenly, they saw Pearl's face, looking as elegant, yet stubborn as always.

The Temps gasped and Jasper grabbed Connie. They all hid behind a flight of stairs before Pearl could see them.

Pearl glanced around. "Hm, the Plug Robonoid has successfully landed on Planet Earth and entered Prime Kindergarten Control Room in Facet Five. Now, I will see how this Kindergarten is."

"It's Pearl…" Lapis choked in a whisper.

"Is she trying to re-activate the Kindergarten? Clod! All we've worked for… Every human we protected… it'll be for nothing! Doesn't she know it'll destroy all life on Earth?!" Peridot cried in a hush.

"Maybe we can convince her to stop?" Connie asked tentatively.

"Shh!" Jasper cried, seeming panicked. "Kid, don't you realize, we're facing an enemy we don't know with technology we don't understand. This isn't the time to be asking questions!"

"Yes it is! What am I to do? Sit here and just hypothesize?!" Connie asked.

"Stop making up words!" Jasper cried.

"But-" Peridot attempted.

"Ok - here's the plan:" Jasper said, turning to them. "We can't let her see us, so we wait for an opening. When she's distracted, we destroy the power source on the far wall. Connie stays here!" Lapis and Peridot nodded in approval.

They turned back to see Connie gone. They saw her creeping up the steps with Pearl's screen turned. They whisper-shouted her name.

"Now accounting for all operational Injectors, if there even is some on this hunk of dirt." Pearl snarked.

Suddenly, two spots on the floor began to glow white, and two large green hand constructs emerged from them. The hands activated a pair of panels on the ceiling which caused cylinders to come down.

"Hm… I could make some improvements on these." Pearl muttered. "But I suppose that is a work for a Peridot."

"She is really good a technology." Connie whispered under her breath.

The screen froze, hearing Connie's whisper. The operation canceled and the screen turned to face Connie. Pearl was startled and fell back slightly. "What are you?!"

"Um… I'm Connie." Connie said, brushing off her dress.

"Connie…. You are… a Connie?" Pearl whispered.

"Yes…" Connie said, hands behind her back nervously.

"Hm… Are there any more Connies around here?" Pearl asked, narrowing her eyes.

Connie smiled nervously. "Just me."

"Oh. Interesting." Pearl seemed to be writing these things down on the screen beside her, researching this 'new species'. "Have Connies taken over the dominant race of human beings?"

"Oh! No!" Connie giggled. "There's lots of humans, there's my dad, Steven, Lars and Sadie, the mailman, Onion... I think... lots of people."

Pearl wrote this information down as well. "Very interesting…"

Connie watched the screen turn away from her and said, "Now, can I ask you a question? Why are you here?"

Pearl seemed to give a sigh. "I would love to study more on you and your species, but I'm afraid I have work to do." Suddenly, the hand she was controlling went into a fist. "Good bye."

Connie gave a cry as it was about to crash her. Jasper suddenly leapt in front off her and grabbed the hand, forced to act. She threw it away, leading Pearl to turn.

Pearl gave a gasp seeing Jasper's gem shine. "A GEM?! This is impossible!"

Lapis flew up and went in front of Connie protectively while Peridot held her pole in warning.

"There's more!" Pearl whispered in shock. "But the Red Eye didn't report the presence of any Gems on this planet!"

"That's because we destroyed it!" Peridot growled.

"You what? But the records say that Gems were wiped out on Earth…" Pearl's eyes widened. "...wait a minute... you're the ones that have been destroying my Plug Robonoids... are you the reason the Homeworld Warp is down again? Is

THIS your bizarre icon?" She showed the sign Connie had made. "Ugh, why do you keep delaying my mission?!"

Peridot gave a growl and stepped up. "Because we are the Crystal Temps!"

Lapis nodded and walked up. Water came from her gem and she rose it high above her. "Yes! We're still alive, and we're still the guardians of this planet and all its living creatures!"

"The Crystal Temps?" Pearl whispered, cocking her head. "What are you attempting to do, that's not pointless?"

They gave a war cry and started attacking the hands. Pearl gave a groan of annoyance.

Jasper and Peridot smashed one together.

"Stop! How dare you? I'm doing this one way or another. You're just... making it... really... difficult!" Pearl screeched.

"Lapis, now!" Jasper yelled.

Lapis flew up. She had a dark look in her eyes as all the water, a lot of water came from her back. She gave a yell as the water slammed a fist into the hand, knocking it into the control panel.

"I'm reporting this!" Pearl hissed and the screen went black.

Lapis looked shocked and landed on the ground. "T-That's it… They're coming."

Connie tried to ask who but the Temps stared at her, clearly disappointed.

"Okay... I, I might have gone a little too far this time." Connie sighed.

"Well, Connie, you weren't completely wrong. We learned something new because of your decisions."

Connie beamed.

"But don't ever do that again, or I will… very lightly punch you."

* * *

 **Okay, School is starting up soon guys, at least for me. Despite how quickly I've been pulling these off, because I need to study and still have _some_ free time from writing, I'm going to have to... make a schedule. (Someone throws a tomato) WHOA! Calm it bucko! I'm going to start doing these about once a week every Saturday. Yes, I know it's not Saturday today, you'll just have to wait a bit longer for this next one.**


	45. Yellows Scabbard

Connie and the Temps were in the battlefield filled with strawberries again and Connie glanced around. "Why are we here again?"

"This was a site of two historic battles, one of which we found Lapis." Peridot smiled. Lapis gave a groan. "Every weapon here was left by a Gem over 5,000 years ago. I don't like to disturb it, but Jasper said she feels guilty leaving  
these lying around."

Lapis picked up a large ax that she recognized and smiled. "This won't try to kill us anymore!"

Connie and Peridot nodded in agreement.

"I wonder if I can find some ancient artifact around here!" Connie cried, skipping away. "Lion help me look!"

The lion glanced sitting next to Jasper. He walked away and started digging at something.

"Aw, come on." Connie groaned.

"You must order the lion,Connie!" Peridot groaned.

"Oh, we've been making progress, now he looks at me when I say his name!" Connie grinned. She called his name, then again, and again until she gave up. "Uh, sometimes…"

Connie turned and saw a shine from dirt. She ran over and got something out. She brushed it off and saw it was a gorgeous gleaming shield, yellow with her mother's insignia. "Peridot, look!"

Peridot walked up and grinned. "One of your mother's soildersmust've had a real shield, to help defend…"

Connie smiled softly. "I think… Can I keep this? Please?" She begged. For some reason, she thought it might make her close to the gem who had fallen holding it.

"I suppose…" Peridot muttered.

There was a gentle roar and they turned to see Lion had a yellow scabbard in its mouth.

"Oh my stars! The scabbard for Yellow Diamond's sword!" Peridot gasped, running to the lion. She tried to struggle it away from Lion but he held firm. "Gimme it, beast!"

"My mother fought here?" Connie whispered.

"That's right! And I, the brave Peridot, fought alongside her." Peridot grinned.

Lapis gave a sigh. "I wish… I could've been here before being abandoned."

"No, you don't." Jasper growled. "You would've been caught in a war, captured and forced information out of if you sided with us and they caught you… It was filled with destruction and death."

Peridot suddenly popped in front of her. "But we won! Your mother led us to glorious victory! The odds were against us, and our hearts were uncertain. But we chose to fight alongside our Diamond, and here we made our stand against our  
Homeworld!"

Connie smiled.

The gems warped home.

"Come on, I'll help you with that." Jasper said, helping Lapis with the ax.

"It's been ages…" Peridot whispered, hugging the scabbard close, blushing. She felt Connie staring at her and turned. "What's upsetting you?"

"W-what was my mother like?" Connie whispered.

"She was courageous, and brilliant... and beautiful... Sometimes, you look so much like her." Peridot grinned.

Connie smiled softly.

"Connie... Maybe you should hold onto this…" Peridot whispered, givingthe scabbard to Connie.

Connie's eyes misted. "This'll complete it… I've been needing this, thank yo-"

Peridot had clearly been to lost in memory, not listening. "I wonder where her sword is… Nothing else could fit so perfectly inside! Let's go get it!"

"Peridot, you don't-"

"Can you keep a secret? Take it to your shattering point, I pray it never comes?" Peridot whispered.

Connie's voice trailed off. "A secret?"

"Shh! It's a secret, even to Jasper and Lapis. Yellow Diamond had a place that she kept hidden from all but me, but you have her gem. That place is yours now, and I can show it to you!" Peridot cried, giddy with excitement.

"Okay…"

They warped and saw a mountain.

"Now it's just a three-hour hike that way, followed by a vertical climb at 90 degrees. Think you can handle it?" Peridot asked. Connie nodded eagerly.

* * *

Despite wanting to, Connie was soon too exhausted to move. Peridot climbed up the mountain with Connie tied to her back by the metal pole wrapped around her waist.

"I was your mother's sole confidant— for the words she could share with no one else, I was there to listen." Peridot smirked gleefully.

"Why'd she keep so many secrets?" Connie asked.

"She had to, Connie!" Peridot said. "It's the mark of a great leader, knowing just what to keep hidden from everyone you're trying to protect. Everyone except me!" She squealed. They reached the top and went into the cave.

"Welcome to Yellow Diamond's secret armory!" Peridot announced. Connie recognized it immediately. "I'm sorry, but I've been here before…"

"W-what?" Peridot asked dryly. "Connie, no, no that's insane. You must be thinking of someplace else, I'm the only other Crystal Temp that's witnessed the Armory's magnificence before now!"

"No… Lion showed me…" Connie whispered.

"THAT YELLOW MAMMAL?!" Peridot cried.

Connie gave a tiny nod, motioning her to the pedestal. "Um, yes… There's a lot of amazing things in here!"

"I know!" Peridot groaned, watching the floor glow yellow. "That's why I brought you here! Now let me show you how you can access the artillery."

Connie placed her hand on the placed pedestal. "Oh, no. I can do this!" She blinked and smiled in memory. "Oh, right." She poked her cheek and axes came out of the floor. "Look, axes!"

"The Axes of Ages?!" Peridot murmured in surprise.

Connie poked herself, wincing. "And then there's this really strong warrior with chains!"

"The Heretic's Anguish?!" Peridot groaned, pulling her hair.

Connie poked her side again and grinned. "Three Electric Cannons!"

"The Electrocuting Trio!" Peridot whispered.

Connie poked her nose and armor came out. "And, armor!"

"The Armor of the Fallen, Connie! Ugh, this is crazy!" Peridot fell onto the floor rocking herself. "We're looking for her sword!"

Connie blushed. "I thought you knew…"

* * *

Connie stood in front of Lion and it had bowed to her. "There's a lot of things in here," Connie said, holding the yellow shield from the battlefield. She leapt into Lion, holding her breath. Lapis, Jasper, and Peridot waited until Connie  
leapt back out. Before they could respond, Connie ran up the steps and grabbed the sword from her room. She ran back and said, "I found it in Lion's mane, and have been using it pretty often." Connie explained.  
"But ever since Amethyst… I decided not to just carry it around until real world-threating emergencies, like when Amethyst tried to kill Dad and Steven."

"Yellow Diamond's sword, how did it start in there?" Peridot squealed, pointing to Lion.

"I don't know, but there's a ton of stuff in there, I keep stuff in him too, as you saw." Connie grinned.

"HOW?!" Peridot screeched. She ran to Lion and tried to enter but he growled at her. "This beast… it couldn't be related to such a beautiful, glowing, lustrous, won-"

"That's why it's so yellow!" Lapis interrupted, rubbing its back.

"Duh!" Jasper chuckled.

Peridot glared at them. "But… My Diamond didn't have a lion."

Connie slowly took the sword out and put it in the real scabbard. "But… I'm almost certain it's her things."

Peridot almost forcefully tore the sword and sheath away. "No, My Diamond didn't have a lion, because if she did have a lion I would have known about it!" Peridot cried, hugging the sword and flushed.

"Yellow kept many things secret, even from us." Jasper tried, crossing her arms.

"But not from me, I was the one she told everything, me, Peridot, not you!" Peridot growled, tears in her eyes.

Lapis gave frown, her eyes burning, her own small tears floating upward with her unchecked emotions. "Peridot, we miss her too!" Jasper grabbed Lapis' shoulder to calm her.

"You clods can't understand how I feel, none of you had what we had!" Peridot yelled, her right hand curling into a fist.

"She probably just wanted to protect you, like everyone else." Connie whispered weakly. She gave a small smile.

"What do you know?! You've never even met her!" Peridot slammed her fist into the wall, causing the picture of Connie's mother to fall off. Peridot gave a whimper but Jasper caught it just in time. Peridot looked at Connie who was shocked.  
Peridot gave a growl and ran to the warp pad.

Lapis flew to Connie, checking for injuries. "P, you could've seriously hurt her!" Peridot vanished on the warp pad.

Connie looked up and whispered. "Where did she go?"

"I don't know." Lapis sighed. She turned around and whispered, "And at the moment? I don't care."

Connie watched Lapis run to her room and turned to Jasper. "Jasper?"

The gem didn't respond.

"I-Is she going to be okay?" Connie whispered, wiping away a tear. Jasper had seemed to be lost in her own memories. "I'm… going to go check on her." She turned to Lion. "Do you know where she went?"

Lion gave a growl.

"That's a yes, isn't it." Connie said, hoping on the animal. "Let's go!" Lion opened a portal and leapt in.

Jasper frowned and whispered, "Good luck, kiddo."

Lion and Connie were back at the Gem Battlefield. "Peridot?"

Peridot was clutching the sword and turned to see them. She fled. "Go away, Connie!"

Lion made portals and caught up to the small gem. Peridot was trying to run and get somewhere private.

"Please! Stop!" Connie yelled.

Peridot ran faster and jumped onto small platforms of earth. "Get that hairy neon beast away from me!"

Connie stopped Lion and whispered, "You better sit this one out, Lion." The animal sat down in front of his young mistress and she turned back to see Peridot was leaping among the platforms. Connie was in fact much more graceful than  
Peridot, so was quick to catch up.

Peridot leapt onto the highest platform though and Connie was hesitant. "I guess… I'm coming."

She leapt to another platform and another until she was one away from Peridot.

"This is really hard to do in flats." Connie laughed nervously.

"Go away! I don't want to talk about my feelings right now!" Peridot squealed, back turned.

Connie felt her heart sink. "Peri! Did I... did I do something wrong? You got to tell me!" She cried.

Peridot didn't respond.

Connie didn't care if no human could make the jump. Some part of her memory said she could make it. Connie took a breath and ran off the edge. She felt like she was flying, light as air. She was filled with determination. Then, Peridot turned.  
Her face was filled with both anger and sorrow, eyes filled with tears as she clutched the sword.

Connie's eyes widened in surprise, and she fell.

"CONNIE!" Peridot screeched, watching her fall.

Connie was quick to grab a vine just before she fell into a infinite forest. She was sweating, thin arms struggling to hold on tight. She glanced up and saw Peridot was looking down from the platform, as if to see if she was okay. Once she saw  
Connie staring, she went back.

Connie slowly started climbing up and got to the top, panting. Peridot had both hands to the side of her face, crying tears of sorrow and anger at herself.

"Peridot!" Connie cried, running to her. "Peri, you have to tell me what's wrong.

"Sometimes, you even sound like my Diamond…" The gem whispered. "Do you even remember this place? Do you have any of her memories? We fought a battle here, found Lapis here…" Suddenly, her gem glowed and a hologram of a towering  
woman appeared. Connie looked at it with tears in her eyes.

"Peridot…" The hologram said in Peridot's voice.

"Yes, my Diamond?" Peridot asked, making her hands into a diamond shape but Yellow slowly pushed her hands to their normal state.

"I'm going to stay and fight for this planet. I've put you and Jasper through so much already, and that Lapis Lazuli almost shattered you both today.…" Yellow whispered. "You don't need to fight alongside me…"

"But I have to-!" The Diamond put a finger on the gem's lips.

"You might've been made for me, but you do not have to serve me any longer, I am a traitor." The hologram said. "Please, please understand if we lose, we'll be killed, and if we win, we can never go home."

"But why would I ever want to go home, if you're here, my Diamond?" Peridot smiled softly. "I will always serve you."

Yellow let out a laugh. "My Peridot…" She reached out her hand and Peridot's eyes grew into stars. She breathed in excitement and slowly grabbed it but the hologram poofed away…

"Everything I ever did, I did for her." Peridot whispered, Connie staring in surprise, trying to comprehend. "Now she's gone, but I'm still here, and I'm going to die here and… Sometimes, I wonder if she can see me through your eyes."  
Peridot gave a sigh. "What would she think of me now?"

Connie hesitated before walking up and hugging the gem. "Well… I think you're pretty great." Peridot flinched in shock, then started silently crying…

A few minutes later, Peridot and Connie had climbed down and Peridot had given Connie back her mother's sword and scabbard, which she put on her back to return to her room later. Connie then told her the crazy story of how she and Steven  
had first found the sword, acting it out and making Peridot crack a grin. Connie got a idea and held her breath. She leapt in Lion and then came out holding a yellow battle flag that she had seen before. Peridot gasped.

Connie sat beside Lion later, listening to the epic tales of the Gem War and of her mother that Peridot told. And later, as the sun set, Peridot and Connie rode Lion home, the flag still firmly grasped in Peridot's hands.

* * *

 **I couldn't hold this in! Okay, change of plans, Once every Wednesday.**


	46. What a Cliffhanger

Connie and Steven were watching the Season 5 finale of Crying Breakfast Friends. Steven was sobbing and Connie held his hand.

"Pear! Stop! Please! Reconsider!" Sobbed Strawberry.

Pear looked at his friend before entering the lunchbox. "Goodbye!" He sobbed. The Lunchbox closed and the giant human hand took it.

"No…" Steven whispered, staring at the black screen and wiping tears away. "NOOOOO!"

Connie watched the end credits play and whispered, "I know…"

Steven got up from Connie's bed and gave a sniff. "S-So, now that you've seen the finale twice… W-what did you think of it, Connie?"

"I… I thought it was epic." Connie shrugged.

Steven sighed. "Man, I was really hoping for Pear to confess his love to Strawberry before that!"

"Oh…"

"And then they would've had a wedding… and they could go fight Dinner, together, and then Season 5 could end, but it didn't!" Steven cried.

Connie thought for a minute then nodded. "Totally! They've had too much adventure!"

"It's just… disappointing. Maybe next season. Until then, I'm just gonna have to wonder what could've been…" Steven sighed.

Connie looked at him and said, "I wish I could give you a new ending…"

Steven smiled softly and Connie blushed. Suddenly, a yellow glow emitted from her shirt. She gasped in surprise and saw the temple door open at her wish.

"The temple door! It opened for me!" Connie said, after they ran to the door. Steven's eyes were thier signature stars. "I can make anything I want in there! I can make us a new ending!"

Steven only stared in awe and Connie laughed, "Come on!"

They went into the room together. Connie threw her hands up and cried, "Tada! This is my mother's room!"

"Amazing…" Steven whispered.

"I can control it, like this." Conni then called out loudly, "I want a tiny floating whale to give me some fin!" The whale appeared and high fived her.

"Cool! How does it work?" Steven asked.

Connie smiled. "The room can make stuff out of clouds. We can make anything."

"Anything? How about the whole season 6?" Steven asked. "On a movie screen with popcorn and apple juice-"

"Whoa!" Connie laughed, slowing him down. "All I have is theories about Season 6, besides, the true writers are much better at it… Let's keep it simple!"

"Simple. Okay, well, what really matters are the characters. You should be Strawberry, since she's your favorite character."

"Okay. Room, I want to be dressed like Strawberry!" The room poofed her into a pretty red shirt with black dots to look like seeds on it and a flowing pink skirt. Her hair was tied back with a green scrunchie."Hm, I guess this'll

do since they've never made costumes in the real world."

"Cool! Okay, my turn. Room, I want to be Pear." The kids waited and Steven blinked. "Huh? Maybe it got confused?"

"Oh, sorry. I guess the room just makes things when I want it. Maybe this won't work after all…" Connie sighed.

"Why don't you just have it make a costume shop?" Steven asked.

"Oh! Great idea, Steven! Room, I want a costume shop!"

The shop appeared and Steven ran in while Connie waited outside.

"Whoa, this is amazing, Connie! They're so much material for being the character!" Steven paused. "Did you think that Pear was emerald green?"

"Did you think something different?" Connie asked nervously.

"Oh, it's fine! I just thought he was mint green. Oh! This brown hat would be great to represent his stem!"

"Uh-huh!" Connie grinned outside.

"Oh! What if Pear had a shield, then he could defend himself from enemies!"

"Totally!"

"And these boots are awesome!"

"Are you almost done?" Connie asked.

"Almost!" Steven called from inside.

Connie blushed and cried, "Come on! I want to see you!"

Steven walked out immediately after she said that and she felt her heart swell. He had his black hair sticking goofily out from under the brown cap and wore a emerald green shirt with brown pants and boots.

"You look incredible." Connie whispered.

"Aw shucks." Steven blushed.

"Come on! Let's do this!" Connie laughed, grabbing the boy's hand and pulling him away from the shop.

"So, you wanted them to get married, right?" Connie beamed.

"Sure!" Steven cried.

"Um, alright… They're here, at the altar," an altar appeared behind them. "With a cleric…" A priest appeared. "Just married." Connie poofed into a wedding dress with flowers in her hair and Steven was in a suit. "And

now, they're happily newly weds! So now, hmm, uhhh, I don't know. What do you think?"

Steven smiled back and said back, "Hmm, what do you think?"

Connie was caught slightly off guard "Well… we must defeat Dinner, so let's go and find the lunchbox. Right?"

"Yeah! That's awesome!" Steven said. The wedding things poofed away and Connie saw in the distance a giant lunchbox appear.

"Come on, Pear! Let's go to the lunch box and take back our home!" Connie cried.

"Okay!" Steven said. Connie started to run to the lunchbox and Steven followed.

They reached it and Connie said, "We did it! What now?"

"You tell me." Steven said.

He felt off somehow… Connie cough and said, "Well, er, we better pack some supplies."

A backpack appeared on her back. "We ready?"

"If you think so!" Steven replied.

Connie tilted her head in confusion. "Didn't you have a bunch of ideas? That Pear and Strawberry should fight Dinner together?"

"Sure!"

"Right…" Connie said. "Well, how about… we're stopped by the appetizers, and they guard from us seeing the mastermind behind it all…"

Appetizers with angry eyes appeared.

"And they have weapons!"

Weapons appeared.

"And… they threaten us, right?" Connie asked, the butter knives the food had pointing to her throat.

"Whatever you think!" Steven grinned.

"Um… then they attack us!" The butterknives started slashing and Connie pulled Steven behind a barrel she had wished up. "These guys are awful! What do we do?" Connie laughed, looking at Steven.

"Whatever you want to do!" Steven said, smiling as always.

"C-come on I'm really trying here! How do you want this episode to end?" Connie cried.

"How do you want this episode to end?" Steven repeated her.

"I don't know!" Connie cried, blushing furiously. "I just wanted to do this for you. This isn't really like you I-" She sighed then said, "I don't want you to just do what I want."

Steven's smile faded instantly and his eyes widened. "Uh… uh… You want me to not d-do what you want?" He grabbed his head.

Connie felt worry come over her and she attempted to touch Steven and assure him, "Steven, are you ok-?"

The boy interrupted her, making her hestatie. "I want… what you want. What you want-want-want-want-" He sounded like a broken record, saying the same thing like… a glitch?

Connie remembered the things she had said before:

"I want a tiny floating whale to give me some fin!" It had obeyed.

"I want a costume shop!" It had obeyed.

"Come on, I want to see you!" And then… Steven had walked out… No, he hadn't, the room had just obeyed her, as it always did!

Connie felt her body freeze as she looked at the Steven made of clouds. "I… I created you!" She gasped, seeing it still saying want over and over again. "You're not Steven! I must've left the real Steven back at the costume shop.

H-He could be anywhere! No, no, no, no, NO! I'm done, I'm done playing!" Connie cried, thrusting her arms out. Her clothes poof back to normal and Cloud Steven stopped, looking confused and clutching his hair. Connie stood and placed her hand

on the ground that vanished, then the lunchbox, then waved away the appetizers. She felt the imposter still there and turned, thrusting her hands out. The clouds poofed back but they didn't go away. Connie fell to the ground, panting in shock, none  
/of that was real…

Suddenly, the clouds reformed the fake Steven.

"Why didn't you disappear with everything else?" Connie cried, sweating.

"You told me not to do what you wanted!" The thing hissed.

Connie gave a yell in anger, "Where is Steven?!"

She suddenly heard Steven's distant voice,

"Connie? Connie, where are you?!"

"Steven? S-Steven, Is that you?" Connie called, relieved. She started to run to the voice but the fake one grabbed her wrist, stopping her. "Urgh! Let go of me, I want to find the real Steven!" Connie cried, struggling in his

grip.

"You told me you wanted-"

"That doesn't matter!" Connie yelled, wrenching herself away. She ran, and ran, but the cloud Steven was chasing her. "Don't follow me, I don't want you to follow me!" Connie cried.

"Uh, lunchbox!" Connie yelled, swerving around it once it was made. The imposter was quick though and still ran after her. Connie started to run faster and called out, "Falcon!" for she was thinking about ways to get higher

so the thing wouldn't reach her. She leapt on but her creation grabbed the tail, following her. "Steven, can you hear me?"

"Connie? Connie?!"

"Steven, I'm almost there, just a little bit further!" Connie called. The false Steven attacked her from behind, she gave a cry and was pushed off.

"Please, I don't want you, I want the REAL Steven!" Connie growled, falling as the thing grabbed her thin arms.

Connie landed flat on the ground and the fake boy walked up behind her. "I know what you really want, I know how you REALLY feel!" Connie turned and saw the Steven was in the wedding suit that was on him before. Connie felt her heart

stop.

"Connie?" Suddenly, the real Steven ran out from the yellow clouds, he held a shield in his right hand. "Hey Connie! I found…. you?"

The fake Steven smirked and pinned Connie's arms to the ground. "Steven! I'm sorry!" Connie cried.

Steven's eyes widened in surprise but then narrowed his eyes and frowned. He ran at his poser and shoved it off Connie with a yell.

Cloud Steven gave a demented grin, running to get Connie again. Steven leapt in front of her and blocked with his shield. "Please, leave her alone! The cloud version slammed into it and Steven watched it vanish. He smiled in relief but turned

and saw the imposter near Connie.

"I know you like him!" Connie's creation said as Steven went in front of her to defend her. "And, I know you want him to like you too!"

"No!" Connie yelled, flushed and near tears in embarrassment. "Don't listen!"

Steven thrust his shield out and it vanished once more… Steven turned to Connie, worried but then the imposter appeared on top of her.

"That's why you can't tell him the truth, but you WANT to!" The thing yelled, wrapping his fist around Connie's long hair and pulling. "You wanna tell him!"

"Stop!" Connie cried, tears coming.

"Tell him, Connie!"

Connie struggled harder, grunting with effort as her creation twisted her hair to the point where it hurt.

"TELL HIM!"

Connie felt her teeth grit and then cried out, "I liked the Season 5 finale!"

Steven stopped mid-run. "What?"

"I thought it was so cool how Pear had to decide between his love for Strawberry, or the love for his home! His fate, left uncertain as Strawberry was shaking with tears rolling down her face! Those were genuine tears, Steven! I wanted

to write stories about her emotional state at that moment! I'm-I'm sorry I pretended to want them to get together early, I just didn't want you to think less of me…." Connie whispered.

"Hm, that's better." Steven's twin smiled, poofing away.

Steven walked towards Connie and she whispered, "Are you mad at me for liking the ending?"

Steven gave a small laugh. "Of course not! It's just a show. Why didn't you tell me before? That evil me was really close to hurting you…" Steven touched his heart.

"But, you really care about that show!" Connie cried.

"I care about you more." Steven grinned.

"Even though I liked that epic end scene?"

"Of course you liked the epic end scene, I mean, did you see that?! Besides, you're around those kind of problems every day!" Steven helped her up.

They exited the room, both much happier to be out together knowing each other's thoughts, than in surrounded by hidden truths….

* * *

 **Guys... I had a idea while rewatching Open Book the other day... The Spirit Morph Saga sounds awesome, right? ... I was thinking if enough peoplewanted it, I could make a fanfic series based on those books, like start with the first book and go down the line, telling the story of Lisa and the falcon based of what we know from Steven Universe(His name is too long tospell!) So... Tell me if you want that, because I've always wanted to read this made up saga! Tell me what you think!**  
/

 **P.s... Welcome to the first everConnie Tsunami! (Checks clock) 12:40?! Shoot, I didn't make it in time, tomorrow, I'll try to get it before midnight!**


	47. Shirt Club

Connie happily drew a flyer of her dad, labeling it Guitar Dad. She wasn't the best artist… but she was ok at least. Connie drew little lighting bolts around the guitar and was finished.

"Peridot! Lapis! Jasper!" She called, running down the stairs.

"Don't raise your voice, we're right here." Peridot groaned.

Connie finished the steps and said, "Just gonna go into tow-"

"What's that paper?" Jasper asked, glancing up from the newspaper.

"Oh, this?" Connie asked, showing the flyer. "It's nothing too important."

"Show us!" Lapis cried.

Connie blushed. "Ok, but it's not very good." She hopped up on Jasper's lap and showed the flyer.

"See? Guitar Dad teaches you guitar." Connie smiled.

"Oh… well, it's really cute." Lapis whispered, clearly confused.

"Thanks. It's my dad. He's going to start teaching guitar lessons on the weekends when he's off work and he made me his P.R. Department."

"What's that stuff in his mouth?" Lapis asked, pointing to the little shapes in his mouth.

"Those are his teeth." Connie exsplained.

"Your father is going to kill innocent humans if beams of lighting come shooting out of his instrument…" Peridot said, pointing at the lightning bolts she had drawn.

"No, no. I was trying to show that Dad really rocks on the guitar, and…"

"Um, kid, rocks should be coming out, duh." Jaspersaid.

* * *

Connie hung the poster up in the Big Donut, for she knew more people would come there than the bookstore.

Lars looked up from his work. "Oh, hey Connie, what's that flyer for?"

"It's for my dad, he'll teach you guitar, you guys wanna sign up? My dad's really good." Connie grinned, walking up.

"Sounds pretty rad, maybe I'll stop by and check it out." Lars shrugged while Sadie sat beside him listening to music.

"Here, let me give you a flyer and—" The door suddenly opened and Buck Dewey came in, looking as chill as always. He waved.

"Welcome to the Big Donut." Lars said.

"Good morning, Buck." Connie greeted him pleasantly. When Sadie heard his name she took off her headphones. "Oh! W-what? B-Buck… Hi." She blushed softly. "What can we get for you?" Lars furrowed his brow in annoyance.

Buck looked at the menu then at the doughnuts. "Can I get a caprese salad?"

"Heh, to bad for you, Buck. We only serve don-" Lars satisfaction was interrupted by Sadie saying, "DO-NUT worry, Buck! I'll whip ya up a salad, no sweat!" She was clearly sweating. "I'll be right back." She ran to  
the break room while Lars ran after her. Sadie! You're trying to impress him?!"

Buck glanced at Connie flyer on the board and grinned. "Heh, what's a "guitar dad"?"

"Like my flyer? It's for my dad. He'll teach you guitar." Connie took off the flyer. "Here, take one of these with you-" She suddenly tripped and it taped onto Buck's shirt. He helped her up and then glanced at the shirt. He  
started to laugh uncontrollably

"Are you… okay?" Connie whispered.

"This would make a rad shirt, girl." Buck said.

Connie grinned. "Really?"

"Yeah, let's make your flyer into t-shirts."

"Oh, my dad would love that!"

"Gimme five on it." Buck said, giving his hand to be high-fived. Connie was tall enough but she grabbed her hand immediately. "Ow! Ow, that hurt!"

"Sorry."

* * *

Mayor Dewey went out of his van with printing supplies and smiled. "Ho! I think it's swell you're returning to the family business, son." He put down box. "Gonna help the old man get re-elected again, eh?" The man hugged his  
son and patted him in the head. "Aww, son!"

"Ugh! It's not for campaign stuff, dad. Connie and I are making art."

"Art!" Connie gushed.

"Art, huh? I don't understand it myself, but a boy's gotta have interests and ambitions." The mayor slapped Buck hard in the back, causing his visor to fall off. "WOAH-HO-HO-HO!"

Connie looked around and said, "This stuff can be used to make t-shirts?"

"Oh yeah, I've got all the latest, state of the art screen-printing equipment from years of campaigning. And other some such, mayorly things. Like this week, I'm commemorating a bench!" He showed them a banner that said Welcome to Bench  
City.

"Welcome to... Bench City"? Cool."

Buck gave a moan. "Dad, you can't use this."

"Why not? You know I "gotta gank dat youth vote, boi"!"

"Dad, stop."

Connie saw a small box and opened it. "What's this?" She took out a flyer that was simaler to her own drawing exspect it said Vote for my Dad.

"What have you got there?" Mayor Dewey asked. He read it and smiled. "Aww... I haven't seen this in years. Remember when you drew this, Buck? You couldn't wait to show it off to all your li'l Montessori friends."

"Okay, dad. Thanks for all your help, see ya later. Bye." Buck said, pushing his father away.

"Alright, kids." The mayor said, getting in the van. "I mean... "peace in the Middle-East, Holmes."

"This is so cute." Connie smiled softly, holding a flyer Buck had made.

Buck snatched it away and crumpled it. "Let's just get started already."

Buck and Connie happily put on aprons, Connie posing.

They printed Connie's flyer on many t-shirts.

"Swag." Buck whispered, holding a shirt.

"Now everyone's gonna want lessons from my Dad!" Connie beamed.

"This is bigger than your dad, Connie. It's art. And it's gonna flood the public consciousness." Buck said, the T-shirt reflecting in his visor.

"Let's start handing them out." Connie said, giving him a few.

"Too simple. We need to get controversial. We need to create—boom—a scene."

* * *

"T-shirt Cannon loaded…" Connie murmured on the arcade's rooftop. "Oh, there's Sour Cream."

Buck aimed at the teen and fired. Sour Cream was raving but the shirt hit him straight in the head. He gave a "WOMP!" in surprise. "What in the world?" He opened the T-shirt up. "Oh. This is the coolest thing I've ever  
been hit in the head with!"

Connie looked around and cried, "there's Ronaldo!"

Buck fired and it knocked Ronaldo's hat off. "WHOA! What the heck?" He noticed the shirt and opened it. "Huh? Whoa, weird! Some kind of extraterrestrial space dad guitar shirt? Sooo... you've finally decided to make  
first contact, huh? WHERE ARE YOU?"

Connie blinked but then saw Sadie. "Oh! Sadie's over there!"

Buck launched another one that hit Sadie in the head.

"Ow! What the—?!" Sadie picked up the shirt and unrolled it. "What is this garbage?" She looked up and saw Buck and Connie looking at her on the roof. "Buck made this?!" Sadie started laughing immediately. "This  
is hilarious! Thanks Buck!"

* * *

Connie was siting at the Fish Stew Pizza and ate pizza with Buck, taking a break. "Cheers! Buck, this was such a good idea! I don't know why we didn't collaborate on a project sooner. This'll make my dad so happy. I can't wait to see the look  
on his face when I stop by later."

"Yeah... should be good for a laugh." Buck muttered, taking a bite.

"What do you mean? Why would it be good for-"

Suddenly Jenny entered the shop wearing one of Connie and Buck's shirts. "Giiiirl, Check out my new shiiiiirt!" She said, modeling her shirt for her twin sister Kiki.

"It's really cute." Kiki smiled. "Where'd you get it?"

"I dunno, it just landed in front of me when I was out walking." Jenny shrugged as if it was completely normal.

"Well, if I were you, I wouldn't wear some random shirt that just fell out of the sky. What if there were bugs in it?"

"Re-lax! Who cares where it came from? This shirt is the funniest thing I've seen in my life!"

Connie blinked in confusion while Buck smiled. "Looks like our shirt has a really good buzz goin'."

"Yeah, but... I think they think it's a joke."

"Heh. The only thing that's important is that they're talking about it. That's how real art works." Buck said.

"Oh. Well, I guess you're right…."

* * *

Connie stopped by her father's work, walking up and seeing Sour Cream was taking a picture of her father. "Ok, how's this?" Doug posed.

Sour Cream gave a laugh and said, "So bad."

Doug paid no mind and patted the sit beside him. "Okay, let's get started with the first lesson! Have a seat and grab a—"

The teen immediately turned and walked away. "Where are you going? Oh… I guess he's got an important text or something?"

"Hi! How's it been going today?" Connie asked happily.

"Really great! Lots of people have been coming by thanks to your t-shirts, sweetie."

Connie smiled. "That's great, Dad. I'm really glad I can help…"

Suddenly, Jenny drove up in the pizza delivery car. "Yoohoo, Guitar Dad, I just wanted to say I think you're wonderful and hilarious! *drives off*

"Uh... thank you?" Doug whispered. "Huh, that's kinda strange."

"What is?" Connie asked, tilting her head.

"Well, lots of people have stopped by, but no one's taken a lesson yet."

"What?! Really?!" Connie gasped.

"Ah, maybe they're just checking out the scene before they come back to get a REAL lesson." He started playing the guitar and Connie frowned.

* * *

"Buck!" Connie yelled, running into the Buck in the warehouse they had made the shirts in.

"Hey," Buck grinned, pointing to her. "There's my main girl."

Connie sighed. "The shirts aren't working, Buck!"

"Yeah they are," Buck said, holding one up. "people love' em."

"But... nobody wants guitar lessons from my dad!" Connie protested.

"That's not the point."

"What? Then what is the point?"

"The point is, it's an amazing shirt."

"Oh, my drawing's not that good." Connie blushed.

"Yeah, no. It's terrible."

"What?!" Connie asked, titling her head in confusion.

"That's what's so great about it. Your work is so naive. You really love your dad." Buck gave a smirk. "It's funny."

Connie felt herself sweat and whispered, "I... I don't wanna make these shirts anymore."

"Too bad, Connie, it's so current, you can't stop it. I'm a taste maker, and I'm gonna keep making tastes... forever."

"Forever"?" Connie asked.

"Well, forever after I go to my dad's lame bench commemoration... peace." Buck held a peace sign of his head and left Connie alone…

* * *

"JASPER! PERI! LAPIS!" Connie yelled, running in the house. The gems apparently had tried and failed to make a stool but they stood immediately.

"Whoa, kid, you okay?" Jasper gasped.

"Why are you screaming?!" Peridot cried.

"Where's the fire?!" Lapis asked, hands over her mouth.

"It's an emergency! You have to help me get rid of all the shirts and stop Buck from making more!" Connie cried.

"Has the clothing come to life and possessed the bodies of their wearers?!" Peridot gasped.

"No! They just-"

"Are people catching on fire when they put on the magic shirts?"

"No, no, they're just-"

"Is the clothing destroying the wearer's will to continue on in this mortal coil, thereby shutting down Beach City?!" Peridot screeched.

"No! They're…" Connie gave a sigh. "they're just... using my art in a way I don't agree with."

"... What." Peridot said dryly. The Temps sat themselves back down.

"I can always beat that Buck guy until he listens to you." Jasper shrugged.

"No! No!" Connie cried. "I need another solution."

"Connie, that's the only solution…. wait, I could drown him for you!" Lapis said sweetly.

"Guys, I don't need you to hurt him!" Connie groaned. "Just… help me!"

"You MUST learn to help yourself. That's how you become stronger." Jasper said.

"But—!"

Lapis frowned. "Connie, you're a smart and strong girl, show them."

"Yeah, what she said!" Peridot cried.

"Make 'em understand you." Jasper grinned.

Connie blinked and then smiled a dark and evil smile. "Oh I'll make them understand. I'll make them ALL understand!" She walked out, the Temps mildly surprised.

"Hm… Think she'll be okay?" Lapis whispered. The others merely shrugged.

* * *

The whole town had gathered around Mayor Dewey who was standing in front of a bench. "Okay, is everyone here? Hello! I was supposed to write a speech to uhm…" He adgisted his necktie. "Uh... commemorate this... uh... new bench!  
But what had happened was I ran out of printer ink in my printer, that I keep at home!"

No one noticed Connie was hiding on the roof of the arcade with sunglasses on. She opened a gutair case that had a t-shirt cannon in it.

"So, I went to the store and wouldn't you know it? They didn't carry the brand I was looking for, so…" The mayor was still talking about the printer, all eyes on him.

The girl aimed at Mayor Dewey and whispered, "Bye…."

It was like slow motion, Connie fired the shirt.

"Look out!" One of his bodyguards said, and he dropped his sandwich, running away.

"No!" The mayor cried, defenseless.

The other ran away screaming.

The shirt hit the mayor straight in the heart and he fell into a bench.

The crowd went wild, running in several directions. Only Buck stood still in shock.

"I've been... shirt." His father whispered.

Connie fired more and more shirts.

Buck saw everyone running and slowly picked up the shirt. It was his own drawing for his father.

No one noticed little Connie up on the roof, backing away with a small smile on her lips.

"Buck…" The mayor whispered, opening one up and was touched. "Did you make this?"

Buck was speechless and saw Sour Cream and Jenny laughing nearby.

"This shirt is genius!" Jenny cried. "This is way funnier than "Guitar Dad"!"

Buck turned and saw even Sadie laughing.

"This bench is actually pretty comfortable." Mayor Dewey whispered, holding the shirt. Buck she's a single tear.

* * *

"Anyone else stop by for lessons today?" Connie asked her father.

"So far, no, but I'm sure it'll pick up tomorrow…" Doug sighed,

Connie smiled softly. "Yeah! I'm sure it will. Oh, this is for you by the way. This is the last one so it's super limited edition." Connie gave him a t-shirt

"Thanks, Connie!" Her dad grinned.

Connie smiled.

Suddenly, Buck walked over to them. "Yo, Connie. Just wanted to say uh... I'm sorry for what I did, and... uh…"

"It's okay, Buck. You don't have to say any more than that." Connie said sweetly, all traces of her revenge gone.

"You're a cool cat, Connie Universe." He then turned to Doug. "Hey, Mr. U."

"You wanna take a picture with me?" Doug sighed.

"No way man. I want a lesson...from Guitar Dad!" He showed them his T-shirt.

* * *

 **Sorry, I was supposed to publish this yesterday, I know, but I had a super long day! Anywho, I made the first chapter of UnfamiliarFamiliar and its on my page if you guys want to check it out, give it some feedback! Thanks!**


	48. Story For Connie

It was raining outside and Connie sat in her father's warm house that was in town.

Her dad played the gutair and Connie grinned. "Go Dad!" She laughed.

"Hm. I can't believe I still have the music talent in me." Her father smiled wistfully. He lifted up his drink but a picture was stuck to the bottom. It floated over to Connie and she tilted her head. It was a picture of a young Doug  
without glasses or a slight beard, next to him was a man with white hair and light blue eyes that was pointing at Doug while the teen smiled. "Dad? Who's with you in this old photo?"

Doug glanced over her shoulder and smiled. "Well, pumpkin, that's my pal Marty."

"You've never told me about him." Connie whispered.

"Yeah he's just an old friend from way back when…" Doug smiled and paused then said with the smile still on, "He's dead to me."

Connie blinked. "Who was he?"

"He was my manager back when I first met your mom. I've told that whole story haven't I?"

"Not the version with Marty…" Connie said.

"Oh, well then it's story time. Sit back - get comfy!"

Connie grinned. Her dad was an amazinf storyteller. She got up on the living room couch under a blanket, eyes shining.

"I didn't mean that comfy…" Doug said.

"Story for Connie!" Connie laughed.

"Okay, okay…" Doug said. He picked up his guitar and said, "This is the tale of how your father met your mother… now including Marty." He started to strum a up-beat tempo…

* * *

A young Doug Universe happily played the electric guitar. "Some... say I have no direction, that I'm a light-speed distraction, but that's a knee-jerk reaction. Still... this is the final frontier. Everything is so clear. To my destiny I steer…."  
The teen looked up at the beautiful sky. "This life in the stars is all I've ever known…. Stars and stardust in infinite space is my only home." He slid across the stage, his name lighting up behind him. "But the moment that I hit the  
stage, thousands of voices are calling my name. And I know in my heart it's been worth it all of the while… And as my albums fly off of the shelves, handing out autographed pics of myself. This life I chose isn't easy but sure is one heck of a ride…"  
He played the guitar harder, getting into the song. "At the moment that I hit the stage, I hear the universe calling my name, and I know deep down in my heart I have nothing to fear. And as the solar wind blows through my hair, knowing I have  
so much more left to share. A wandering spirit who's tearing its way through the cold atmosphere. I'll fly like a comet…. Soar like a comet….. Crash like a comet…. I'm just a comet…."

He heard a slow clap and looked up to see a tall woman watching him. She had a yellow battle suit and helmet on. She seemed to be slightly impressed with a sly smile on her face.

"Thanks for coming everybody, I'm Mr. Universe. If you like what you just heard go check out our merch table!" He said, pointing at the merch table. "My manager Marty can hook you up with CDs, and t-shirts - Oh, wait, he's not there...  
I guess I'm going over there now…"

Doug leapt off the stage, running to the table. The mysterious woman walked up. There seemed to be diamonds shinning in her eyes. She at a CD. "Now then, what is this… Space Train to the Cosmos?" She frowned.

"U-Uh, correct! I mean, right!" Doug stuttered lost in her glory.

The tall lady narrowed her eyes. "Why do you want to go there, human? You must have a plan to get back immediately." She said, warning him of something he didn't know about. Doug felt slightly threatened and stuttered.

"But… why? Space is so beautiful…" Doug smiled.

"Not really."

Doug blinked as she picked up a CD.

"Uhh... D-do you want that? You can have it…"  
Doug murmered.

"What?" She asked, showing the first exsprisson that wasn't anger, disgust, or skepticism.

"Oh, and it comes with a free t-shirt!" He pulled out one and looked at the woman. "You'll probably need a bigger one…"

"Heh, you have no idea." The woman smiled.

"I've got an extra extra large in my van! Stay right there!" Doug ran to his car that he didn't know he would sell in the future.

Suddenly, Marty and a teenager got out of it. Doug fell back.

"Star child! Meet Vidalia." Marty grinned.

The blond girl gave a nod. "Nice van. Really livin' the high life."

The manager walked up. "So, how was the show?"

"Oh, it was great! One person showed up…" He ran in and got a extra large T-shirt. "Oh! I have to give her this free…" He turned and saw she was gone.. "t-shirt…"

"Doug! You can't give stuff away for free! What about my 75 percent? 75 percent of nothing is nothing. Are YOU worth nothing?" Marty asked, getting in the teen's face.

"No…" Doug sighed.

"That's right. I'm going to make us both rich." he leaned in Doug's ear. "And as far as these saltwater saps know, we already are." He backed away and put a arm around Vidalia. "So let's live it up before we hit the road,  
alright? Next stop, Empire City!" He and Vidalia walked away.

"Um, I'll catch up with you…" Doug said, sneaking away. He was walking down the boardwalk, looking for the woman. He ran up to a fence that said, "KEEP OFF THE BEACH" Under that was a smaller sign that said, "please"

"Maybe she's over there?" Doug whispered. "I wonder where that giant mysterious lady with the enormous yellow helmet went…"

"Yellow?"

He glanced up and was surprised to see a little girl sitting on top of the fence. She had a blue short pigtails and poofy dress, her bare feet dangling off.

"Little girl, get down from there! You could get hurt!" Doug gasped.

The girl looked at him and smiled. "Who are you, pretty stranger?"

"Uh… Well, I'm looking for-"

"Yellow!"

"That's what she wore but-"

She gave a giggle. "What a idea, her going to see humans…" She looked down at Doug and grinned. "I don't want drown you… but I'd better go ask Peridot."

"What?"

The girl smirked and stood straight up on the fence. Doug felt that he had to warn her before she fell but she interrupted him before he could say anything.

"I wonder..." She whispered, looking him up and down. "Yellow might like you…. She doesn't really like humans that much but you… seem different." The girl suddenly started to wobble and she put her arms out for balance… But  
she fell. Doug gave a cry but wings made of water appeared on her back. She laughed as she flew away.

"Wait! Little girl, wait! Stop!" Doug climbed over the fence, chasing after the little thing when he came to a cave. It was full of light and he saw the girl had ran up to another small person, but the blue one was taller. She was green  
and had green pants and a yellow no-sleeve shirt. She frowned.

"A human spoke to me!" The blue one cried. "Over the fence! He thought I was a little human child, isn't that odd?"

"A human? Well, did you destroy it?" The green asked, as if it was the most chill question in the world.

"But I like this-"

Doug made noise while walking up and the girls both turned.

"It's you!" The taller one cried, using her wings to bolt up to him. She attempted to touch him but the green one grabbed her arm.

Suddenly, a beam of blue light appeared in the room. Out of it came a hulking orange figure with a white mane of hair. "Lapis! Peridot! You're with a human!" The orange woman growled. She ran up and immediately grabbed Doug by his  
collar. "What are you doing here bub, who sent you?!"

"No one did, Jasper. He followed me over the fence!" Lapis said happily.

The orange woman frowned and slowly put him down.

"I-I'm looking for a yellow lady, I-"

"He's looking for Yello-!" Jasper covered Lapis' entire face with her massive hand.

"I said we should destroy him, if he's a spy, but Lazuli-" Peridot started.

"I'll knock him out and then force the info out of him." Jasper said, cracking her knuckles.

"Yes, that shall do." Peridot said smugly.

Lapis gave a cry when Jasper was about to knock Doug out but Jasper was suddenly filled with yellow lines and poofed.

The yellow woman frowned. "I told you not to harm the little weaklings."

Jasper soon reformed, blushing.

"Sorry, my Diamond." Peridot said, making her hands into a diamond shape. Jasper did as well while Lapis looked embarrassed between them trying to do it with her hands, clearly not have been used to making it.

"Mr. Universe, right?" Yellow asked, raising a eyebrow as she walked up. She waved away the gestures by her clearly loyal friends.

Doug accepted her help up but Peridot popped in between them. "Don't you touch my Diamond, you clod!"

"Peridot, please." Yellow sighed. Peridot slowly moved aside, glaring at Doug. "He was playing a isturment other than his voice… We have nothing on Homeworld but our songs to make music…"

"No one can ignore the Universe…." Doug said, blushing sheepishly. "Oh! I brought you this. It's the free t-shirt that came with the free CD!" He gave her the T-shirt and she glanced at it.

"Oh… uh, thank you…" Yellow Diamond said. She seemed to be trying to smile. The younger gems gathered around and she whispered, "His gimmick is space."

Peridot started laughing wildly.

"You play music?" Lapis gasped, practically jumping up and down. "Will you play for us? Please, please, please?!"

"Don't make it sappy." Jasper grunted, a helmet appeared on her head.

"Oh, uh, well, I'm working on this new set, I thinks it's pretty good… I'm playing it at my next show… Next show… Oh dear, what time is it?"

"Please tell me it's time for you to leave." Peridot moaned, still clearly mad at him.

"I guess, Marty's probably looking for me. We're supposed to hit the road... Big show in a big city…"

"Leave!" Peridot yelled while Yellow covered her mouth. "I suggest you hurry. You don't wanna miss your space train to the cosmos, now do you."

"Nope!" Doug blushed. He began to run off. "I'll see you later, I hope." He stopped and glanced back at Yellow, Peridot, Jasper, and Lapis. "Uh, I hope the stars will align for us to meet again!"

Yellow only nodded.

"Bye!" Lapis called, waving and blushing.

Doug waved back and ran away.

Yellow Diamond looked down at the shirt and cracked the tiniest of smiles.

"I can sing, my Diamond!" Peridot insisted. Yellow gave a small chuckle and Jasper and Lapis joined in. "What?"

* * *

Marty was driving the car through the rain and Doug sat in the passenger seat. "Man, Doug, you really missed out. Vidalia's friends were wild and crazy. Glad that town wasn't a total waste."

"I met some wild girls too. They could fly and appeared out of beams of light…"

"Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, save the poetry for Empire City, Star Child. We've got a big day ahead of us tomorrow." Marty laughed. Doug glanced up, "I'm serious, Marty. Something's going on back there."

"Are you nuts? Just wait 'till you see what's ahead of us. It's FAME!" Marty pressed play on the radio but it did. "Hey, what's jammed in your tape deck? You been putting pennies in here, you weirdo? Play something for me, Star Child."

As always, Doug obeyed him and started to play and sing, "Do you believe in destiny? Close your eyes and leave the rest to me-"

"Snore!" Marty yelled, making Doug flinch. "You're gonna put people to sleep with that. Where's the schlock coming from?"

Doug blushed. "I-I just can't stop thinking about that woman at the show, sorry."

"Oh, here we go, how big was she?"

"Eight feet tall... massive helmet…"

"See, Doug, this is your problem. You want one huge woman, when you could have multiple small ones."

Doug gave a groan. "You show no respect for women,Marty…"

"Just follow my lead. I'm gonna get you everything you want."

Doug hestinted before speaking again, "What if I want to go back?"

"WHAT?!"

"W-What if I want to go back and be with her?"

Marty suddenly let go off the steering wheel, angry. "No one cares about your feelings, Doug! They're making you lose sight of what's really important!"

Doug noticed the wheel and yelled, "WATCH THE ROAD!"

A truck was coming straight to them, honking and Marty swerved away.

Doug was breathing deeply. "Why do you always decide what's important?"

"Because I'm your manager, and you're just some spaced out kid. I'm taking you to the city, and you're gonna play, and you're gonna like it. Maybe you'll even make me some money for once."

Doug started to get angry, stood and whispered, "Get out of my car."

"Sit down, Doug."

"I said GET OUT OF MY CAR!"

Later, Marty was kicked out and Doug turned the car around. "What are you doing? You're making a HUGE mistake!"

Doug drove away, carefully as always, but as fast as he could manage. He slammed past the fence, knowing he wanted to come back here many times. He ran to the gave and knocked on the Temple Gate.

"Um, hello? I can play for you now!" Doug blushed. He hopped on the warp pad, putting on the acoustic gutair. "This one's for you, mystery woman!" He started to sing. "Do you believe in destiny? Close your eyes and leave  
the rest to me…. Do you believe in fantasy?" He looked around at the strange place. "I have to when it's right in front of me…. Oh, what are you doing here, in the real world? What are you doing here? So close I could touch you. What are  
you doing here?" He knelt down. "And what are you doing to me?"

The door glowed and Yellow stepped out, looking sad, for the first time. She was wearing the shirt.

"Ah! You're wearing the... shirt…." Doug whispered, noticing her face.

"Go away." She whispered.

"I'm sorry. Did I-?"

Yellow Diamond sighed. "You're awfully cute... and I really wanna play with you, but your life is short and you have dreams. I won't let you give up on everything you want."

"That's gonna be a problem." Doug sighed. He bowed his head.

"Huh?"

He looked up and smiled. "You're everything I want!"

Yellow's eyes turned to big diamonds, that Connie was to inherit. She gave a small smile, and a tear rolled down her face...

* * *

Doug finished with a wistful smile and saw Connie blushing and smiling with happy tears in her eyes.

"What are you smiling about?"

"You loved her.." Connie said happily.

"Come here, you!" Doug laughed, ruffling her hair.

Connie picked up the picture of Marty and her father. "Man, Marty was like a villian!"

"Oh, yeah, he was awful. But I guess I owe him a lot. He made it easy for me to stay…"

"I'm glad he did." Connie yawned. Her father put the picture on the mantle, next to a picture of him and Yellow, and that was next to a picture of Connie looking beautiful peeking up from a book past her sunhat. "Yeah, me too." 


	49. The Message

Connie and Doug were sitting on the beach outside of Doug's car. Doug played his guitar and Connie grinned. "You're so good!"

"Thank you. I'm thinking of calling it "Whip Goddess" Doug smiled. They had pulled out all of Doug's old equipment after Connie had heard about his rockstar days.

"And check this out, sweetheart. I can add some vocal distortion too." Doug put a microphone to his mouth, adjusting the sound to sound like a robot. "Connie, your father's a robot now. And now that I'm a robot, things will be better!  
Please forgive me for being an amazing machine."

"I can't stay mad if my dad's a robot." Connie sighed. "Where's all this awesome energy coming from? You never talked much about music before…"

"Well, I was inspired to make some new songs after the ocean got dried up by purple fire a while back. I even drew up some album artwork."

He showed Connie the cover. It was of a small purple girl with white hair. She had her whips out and eyes closed, a wasteland behind her.

"It looks like…" Connie put her finger on the art, remembering someone. "Amethyst."

"Easy with the tender touches, don't want it to get all smudged. Here, I'll plug this up and help your father work out this tune." Doug took the drawing away.

"Okay!" Connie grinned, picking up her viollin.

Doug attempted to strum the gutair but it made no sound.

"Huh?" Connie asked, tilting her head.

Doug looked around and then relized the plug was plugged into the T.V. "Oh! It's plugged into the T.V. See, I plugged into the video jack but I'm making audio here. Don't you know video killed the audio star?"

Connie looked confused. "What?"

"That's okay, you leave the details to me." Doug grinned. "When you were a one-man band you had to know how to do it all, lyrics, graphic design, forum moderation, but for me it was all about the audio."

Connie smiled.

"Ok, we need a catchy hook! Something like-" Doug started to sing, "Well, she's a wrestling queen and she's, super mean."

"Woah, hold the phone," Connie said. "now give the phone to me…" She held up her violin. "Amethyst was not mean, she was just trying to get home, to her friends. How about this instead?" She played a calm tune on her  
violin. "She was trapped in a mirror, and it couldn't be clearer, she wanted to leave this place, and get herself back in space. And, Dad, you might think,she's a criminal, but her friendship comes through, subliminal. Amethyst… seeing your home  
was all that you wished… Oh, whoa, Amethyst, please know that to me, you will be, missed…"

Suddenly, a loud rumble filled the beach, shaking Connie to the bone. "W-what is that?!"

Doug frowned. "It must be some kind of weird feedback!" He ran up and unsuccessfully tried to turn the sound off. "It's not us, it must be coming from the temple!"

"Really?! Come on!" Connie cried. She grabbed her father's hand, trying to pull him.

"You go on ahead, pumpkin. This is a gem thing and I don't want to get in the way. Plus I get to eat the rest of this pizza." Doug said, motioning to the pizza that they had got for dinner.

"If you really want to… I'll be back."

* * *

The sound got louder when Connie got in the house. "What's happening?!"

"It's the wailing stone!" Peridot screeched.

Lapis gave a moan, barely able to focus on flying over to the wailing stone. She gave a cry and fell to the ground in front of it. "Make this torture stop!"

"It started on its own and it's driving me insane!" Peridot cried, pulling on her star shaped hair.

"Ugh! I can't… get it to stop!" Lapis grunted, trying to put her body weight on it. Jasper walked up, shoving her aside. The gem slammed her hand on the button. The noise stopped and they all sighed in relief. "Nailed it."  
Jasper smirked.

The button came back up and the noise continued.

"UH!" They all groaned. Peridot ran up and made a bubble around the thing, muffling it. "I win, Wailing Stone!" The bubble grew large and popped.

They gave a scream in pain, covering their ears.

Connie put her arm through it, even though it was too thin. Her body vibrated and forced her mouth open. The sound emitted through her. Jasper ran up and pulled her away. She stuffed a pillow into the hole and placed the rest around the stone.  
She placed Connie on top and turned to the other Temps.

"I don't get it, that thing has been quiet this whole time!" Jasper groaned.

"I haven't heard a Wailing Stone activate since we used them for the rebellion, and I've never heard it sound like that!" Peridot cried.

"Someone is trying to send us a message, I guess." Jasper shrugged.

"But who? We rounded up all the Wailing Stones on Earth years ago, and we're not sending this message to ourselves. Unless…" Lapis glanced at Peridot. "Peri, are you experimenting again?"

"I would never! How could you say that about me, the great Peridot?" Peridot huffed.

"If it's not coming from Earth, then a Gem must be sending this message from space…" Jasper muttered.

"Is that what some Gems sound like?" Connie asked, hopping down from the pillows.

"What? No. We should be hearing a voice, that we can understand. Maybe this signal is too advanced for the Wailing Stone to process. That would explain the distorted audio and the wa-"

"My Dad's great at audio!" Connie cried suddenly.

"He is?" Lapis asked. Connie nodded.

"Doug… good at something…" Peridot whispered. "Nope! Not possible."

"Oh hush." Jasper groaned. 

* * *

"I can't believe it! You need help with sound stuff! And I'm… good at it!" Doug said, very happy that the Temps had come to him. "Oh, here it is. The Lubitz Cardioid Condenser 680! It's got warm tone without too much top end."  
He thrust out a microphone that seemed to shine.

"And it has a sponge ontop." Lapis commented.

"So it does." Doug whispered, mistified. He removed the cushions, causing the Temps to cover their ears. He put the microphone in and the sound subsided. "Now I'm going to add some reverb and some low octave effects, I'm also adding  
some fuzz. Now if I directly input the Wailing Stone and put it through a flanger we might get what you're looking for…."

"Flangers aside, do you really think a signal like this is compatible with your analog devices?" Peridot asked smugly.

"Don't worry, Dad!" Connie creid. She picked up the other mic that made the robot voice, "It'll work!"

Doug gave a tiny smile. "Here goes nothing." He pressed play and the sound vibrated the beach, even more ear-wrenching than before.

Lapis gave a cry. "This is worse! Turn it off! Turn it off!"

"Sorry!" Doug called over the noise.

Connie held her own ears but shouted, "It's okay! You're great at audio!"

"Yeah!" Doug cried, adjusting the sound.

Lapis gave a sigh of relief. Connie cocked her head, for the sound was now sort of a song. "It sounds like… music.

"Yeah… It's nice!" Doug grinned.

"But, it's not supposed to be music. It's supposed to be a message!" Peridot growled, making him flinch.

"Okay, hold on, I got this." Doug whispered. He started to adjust the settings and cried, "It's changing!"

"It almost sounds like a voice." Connie said, getting excited.

"Almost got it!" Doug yelled. The engine suddenly shorted out. The sound stopped.

"Oh great." Doug sighed.

"W-What did you do?!" Peridot gasped. The Temps stood.

"Nothing! The car battery apparently couldn't handle all this."

"I had a feeling this wouldn't work, there's just no way that a human like Doug's equipment can interface with our ancient Gem technology."

"Come on Peri, you can't be ready to give up yet!" Connie cried.

Doug sighed. "Look, we just got to keep trying, gang. Sure we don't have the latest and greatest Gem tech, but-"

Jasper removed the microphone and the sound resumed. She muffled it and then walked up to Doug. "At least you tried, right? Okay guys, back to the temple. We'll figure something else out." She leapt away.

"What a waste of time." Peridot scoffed, leaping away.

"Sorry it didn't work." Lapis sighed. "I gotta go." She flew back to the temple. Connie yelled after them, "Guys! Come back!" She ran and attempted to leap after them but she failed.

"I really blew it, huh?" Doug sighed.

Connie stood up, brushing sand of her. "Oh, Dad…" She whispered.

Doug picked up his guitar and started to strum, playing his daughter's tune, "I could have tamed you, I could have shown. That I could depose you from your loud throne… But in the end, I wasn't, good enough. I just showed the Gems that I don't  
got the stuff. Oh-oh, Wailing Stone! I tried so hard to fly, but I was thrown. Oh-oh, Wailing Stone!  
I gotta tell the Gems 'cause they should know…" He strummed faster. "Have a little, have a little, have a little faith in me! I just wanted to help. You know, I, have a little, have a little, have a little expertise! I know it's not much. But  
if it could come in handy, I'd wanna be there. I think so highly of you, it just isn't fair… That you have so little faith…" He sighed at the end, whispering, "Eh, it's a B side."

Connie walked up. "Dad, I hate seeing you like this, there's gotta be something else we can try!"

"Eh, I don't know, pumpkin. I mean, sound and stuff like this, this stuff's my whole world, and if I can't figure this out then I don't know, maybe it isn't even sound…." Doug whispered.

"Dad, if it isn't sound then what else could it be?" Connie looked back at the beach and saw the tv… the microphone… her violin…. wait…. The tv!

"Ah! Oh! Dad! Dad! Dad! Dad!" Connie was practically jumping.

"Are you okay?"

"What if it's…" Connie panted.

"Some other thing I'm not good at?"

She was too excited to speak so merely pointed to her eyes.

Doug frowned, struggling. "Magic... eyeballs…" He suddenly got it. "Oh my word, it's video!"

"We have to tell the Temps! It's video!" She Gave a squeal in excitement and started to run to the house. Doug closely followed. "Hey, slow down!"

The two burst into the room, Doug panting out, "I just want to help, have some faith in-"

"Um, we're over here." He turned to see the Temps reading on the window seat.

"I know my audio equipment seems like a pile of Earth junk to you but-"

"Bud, it's ok, don't beat yourself up-"

"No it's not, you guys don't give up on anything, except for me. Come on... it's not like I can make it any worse!" Doug cried. The Temps glanced at each other.  
The Temps, Connie and Doug were on the beach.

"Okay, go for it Jasper." Peridot said, nodding to the hulking gem. She held the jump cables and electricity came out of her gem destabilizatior.

"Okay Lazuli, try it now." Peridot demanded. Lapis held a key sitting in the car and smirked. "I've never started a car with a key before." She turned it and the car went to life. "Ha, that's way easier!"

"The battery is ready to go." Peridot smiled.

"The Wailing Stone is ready." Connie said, adjusting the microphone.

"Ready with the video cord, Connie?" Doug asked. Connie held to cord and grinned. "Ready."

The girl plugged into the tv and a sound started up. The video was fuzzy, purple and white.

"That's it?!" Peridot cried.

"Just a second." Doug whispered, changing and moving buttons.

"I hear something." Connie said, tilting her head.

"Come on!" Doug cried. Suddenly, the video became clear, revealing a familiar gem.

"Connie!" Amethyst cried

"Amethyst!" Connie gasped, wondering if her summer friend was okay, she sounded so desperate.

"I did it!" Doug cried.

"I can't believe my flipping eyes!" Peridot said dryly.

"Shut it!" Jasper hissed.

Amethyst sighed. "I hope you're able to hear this... Pearl's looking for you, she even knew your name. She's on her way to Earth, and she's not alone. Connie, Homeworld is not the way it used to be. Everything here is so advanced, I can't  
get it anymore. There's no way anything on Earth can stand up to it." The Temps including Connie were shocked. "Listen, don't put up a fight, us for, we're not something to be messed with!" Amethyst cried. It cut to static.

"Us three? What does she mean?" Peridot whispered.

"Oh no!" Lapis moaned. "They won't spare any of us! We all betrayed Homeworld in some manner!"

"Amethyst, she sounded so scared.. she's never scared." Connie sighed.

Lapis was panicking along with Peridot. "What are we going to do?!"

They were stopped by the loud cracking of knuckles. They turned to Jasper who said, "Welp, we did it."

"What?" Peridot whispered.

"We got the message, and that's just great!" Jasper cut off sharply. Her hands balled into fists but Lapis grabbed her before she could punch the tv. After a few seconds of panting, Jasper coughed and looked at Doug. "Well,  
thanks Doug, couldn't have got that without ya."

"Y-you're welcome." Doug whispered with a tear in his eye.

Connie was still seated in the sand, staring at the static. She couldn't goof around right now… What was going to happen to Amethyst? To her father? Steven? The Temps? What was going to happen to Earth when these gems arrived? 


	50. Political Power

Peridot set down a small device she had made herself. She grinned at her cleverness and turned, "Hmm, this spot should be safe. Lapis, do you have the robonoid?"

"Of course." Lapis mumbeld. She held the thing in a bubble of water and smiled.

"Lapis, you clod, I just repaired that, you might break it in water!" Peridot cried.

"It okay!" Lapis groaned. She let the thing down.

"Ugh! Okay, we have everything we need for the experiment," she looked up at the dark temple. "and Connie is fast… GHAA!" Peridot screeched. Connie was suddenly right in front of her.

"Hello!" Connie said happily.

"Connie! It's way past your time of rest! Go back to the house, now!"

"What? I don't want to miss... this. What is this exactly?" Connie asked.

"Peridot got lonely, so she randomly just made a robot, like she always does."

"It's not just any robot, Lazuli - it's a robot disruptor. It should produce a localized energy blast so when Pearl shows up to…" Peridot saw Connie cock her head. The gem coughed and said, "... talk like a civilized person would  
with us, we'll have something that can knock out all her robonoids."

Peridot placed the robonoid down in front of the machine and walked back. "Now stand back everyone!" She pressed a button and the machine activated, it sendt out a very powerful signal that knocked the gems off their feet and shut  
off all electricity in Beach City.

They all gave groans. Connie sat up and pointed to the roboniod. "We did it!"

The roboniod suddenly got up, unaffected. Lapis gave a sigh and fell back.

"Oh… you knocked out all the lights in town." Connie whispered.

"That was not the point of the machine!" Peridot growled. She gave a sigh. "Alright, that was a start, I guess. Now I'm going to need to take some parts out of the washing machine. Connie, you might have to wear the same dress for  
a while."

"Don't worry, I'm completely prepared." Connie said. She tugged of her sun yellow dress to reveal a light turquoise and white one underneath.

* * *

The next morning, Connie was fully awake, as she was a morning riser. She open the fridge and pulled out her breakfast, putting it in the microwave after she had crawled on the counter. It didn't work. She frowned. She tried to look at it  
closer but it opened, hitting her in the face. "Ow! Ugh... ! What is the meaning of this?!"

There was a sudden knock and Connie went to answer it. The sweating Mayor was there.

"Er… good morning, Mayor… What's wrong?" Connie said uncertainty, cocking her head.

"Hello there young Universe." The Mayor said. "Any of your sisters home?"

Connie was even more confused now. "My... sisters?"

"Your caretakers! You know...the big one, the green one, the hot one."

Connie stared blankly.

"Look, the power is out and I've been mayor long enough to know they had something to do with it."

"My sisters?" Connie whispered again.

"Is there anyone else I can talk to about this?" The Mayor groaned.

Connie slowly turned into the house, about to call for Peridot when Lapis suddenly came out of her room. The mayor started to sweat harder, adjusting his collar.

"Oh, hi Connie!" Lapis said, flying up. She then saw the mayor and smiled. "Hello, can I help you with something?"

"Yes." The mayor said, dumbfounded. He came to his senses suddenly. "Oh hi! Beach city is currently experiencing a wide spread power outage-"

Lapis grinned. "Oh, don't worry about that, Peri said the power should be back on as early as tonight or as late as... never!"

"Never coming back?!"

"Um… yeah."

"No, no, no! It has to come back! The people of Beach City can't handle a situation like this, they need their electronic distractions so they won't know that this town is a magnet for disaster!"

Lapis cocked her head. "It'll be okay. I saw humans get on fine without power for millennia. You used to hunt and gather… what happened to that?"

The mayor seemed scared. "You don't understand, sure things seem calm now in the light of day but when the sun goes down," his face darkened. "so does the town."

"He's right." Connie said. "Mayor Dewey, this is our responsibility, we'll help you clean up this mess."

Suddenly they heard Jasper yell, "Not gonna happen!"

Lapis walked away.

"I'll help you clean up this mess." Connie rephrased.

"Okay, but you're not getting paid."

* * *

Connie and the Mayor drove up to the Big Doughnut.

"All right, we gotta go do damage control now or the boardies are going to get restless."

"Boardies?" Connie asked.

The mayor hopped out of the van seeing Lars and Sadie. "Hello, youth resident of Beach City."

"Is everything all right?" Lars asked.

"You mean besides the power knocking out the freezer and melting all this ice cream?" Sadie growled, throwing a box of melted ice cream on top of others beside the dumpster.

"Oh, sorry guys." Connie sighed.

"It's a real pain in the-" Sadie sat down on the stack of ice cream which was quick to get on her jeans. "Wahh! Ugh…"

"I'd offer you some but its pretty soupy." Lars said, turning and putting some boxes on the pile.

"Can other businesses not run without electricity too?! This really is a crisis! The city will be a mad-" The mayor put a hand on Connor's shoulder.

"Now lets all calm down here, I have everything under control."

"You do?" Connie whispered.

The mayor forced a laugh. "Of course! The power will be back and the freezers will be working by sundown. No need to cry over frozen milk, here." He gave Lars a glow stick and election button.

"I'll catch you kids on the side that flips. You take care now." The mayor said, walking back to the van.

"Bye." Connie waved, running to the van.

Lars looked down at his head, then back at Connie. "Thanks for the glow stick."

"So everything is going to be okay?" Connie whispered.

Mayor Dewey frowned. "What? No."

"You lied to them?!" Connie cried.

Dewey rolled his eyes. "Look Connie, it's not lying when you're the mayor - it's politics."

Connie frowned. "It is?"

"Of course it is. Let me tell you something, when you work for the government you can't control what happens in the world but you can control how people feel about. That's the real weight I carry, making the good people of Beach City feel  
better, safer, more secure."

"But, sir-"

"What's my other option? Let the people panic and riot? That didn't work out so well for Ocean Town."

Connie cocked her head. "I've studied the surrounding cities before, I've never heard of Ocean Town."

"Exactly, that's why you've got to give the people something to believe in. When they see my giant head on this car rolling down the boardwalk they think "Here comes help!". Well, some people think "Here comes that exterminator guy." But then  
they realize its me - their mayor! Have you seen that exterminator truck with a head on it? He's totally copying me."

"Uh…"

"Here, take these." He handed Connie a paper bag full of election buttons and glow sticks.

They drove in front of a crowd of fighting people, almost the whole town. The mayor went out of his van with a megaphone, Connie standing awkwardly beside him. "Attention, my good citizens. As you may or may not be aware of, there is a power  
outage affecting all of Beach City Area proper."

"Oh, really." Gunga Pizza said, crossing her arms.

"This problem is just a temporary one - not a big one at all. Things could be worse - we could be in Ocean Town." Mayor Dewey laughed nervously. Some uneasy glances and hushed laughs rippled through the crowd.

"Too soon!" Mr. Fryman yelled.

"Anyway, the power will be back on by sundown so in the meantime, just enjoy this beautiful, peaceful day outside. The power will be back on before you know it, I promise."

The crowd buzzed in approval, Gunga saying, "I trust this man!"

The mayor whispered into Connie's ear, "Okay, make sure everyone gets a button and a glow stick." Conni stiffly walked away while the Mayor waved with a nervous grin to the crowd on his face.

Connie gave a glow stick and button to every member of the Pizza family. She went to her father next.

"Oh, hey, pumpkin. You get some sort of secret government internship I need to know about?" Doug asked. Connie gave a nervous laugh, giving him a button and glow stick. "Apparently you can't have too many 'Mayor Dewey' buttons. Sounds  
like I'm not gonna be needing this glow stick though." Doug gave the glow stick back. He walked away. Connie noticed the empty street.  
"But... Dad!"

Connie walked up to the beach house, pausing to glance at the sea before walking up the steps. She paused when she heard the Temps' voices.

"She's going to have backup, Amethyst said so!" Lapis cried.

"Who knows what she's going to have? We won't stand a chance against their weapons. But, if we can just knock them out…" Peridot thought.

Connie glanced over and saw a group of electric cannons. She felt her body take in fear and worry.

"It's not about the robonoids, Peridot! She's coming with other gems, you get that, right?! Some gems might even stronger than me!" Jasper growled. Connie was shocked.

"T-That's… no! No!" Lapis cried in panic.

"Lapis, calm down!" Jasper said.

Lapis was breathing hard as Connie walked up. The blue gem saw her and gasped. "Connie!"

Peridot and Jasper saw the girl and immediately quieted. Lapis flew up. "Honey, I thought… you weren't coming back anytime soon! W-Why are you here?" Lapis said, hugging Connie with a nervous smile plastered on her face.

"I live here…" Connie whispered. "Um, is everything okay?"

"What? Everything's fine! Just fine!" Peridot laughed.

"A-ok kiddo!" Jasper grinned. "We were just about to play cards!"

"Indeed! Would you like to play War?" Peridot blurted out. Lapis glared at her. "I mean… Peace?"

"But we can't play in the dark." Connie frowned.

"We can make a fire." Jasper suggested.

Peridot nodded. "Yes, like the early settlers before you!"

"Come on!" Lapis laughed. They walked in but Connie hesitated. She peeked in, seeing the Temps talking quietly to each other. She was certain they weren't talking about cards. She saw the setting sun in the distance. She remembered the  
mayor's words: When the sun goes down, so does, "The town."

The residents of Beach City were angry, very angry at the mayor.

"How come there's still no power?" Peedee yelled.

Jenny called out, "You said it would be on by sundown!"

"Everyone just calm down. I'm sure if we just talk rationally, we can come to an agreement."

"No agreement!" The grandmother yelled. "You promised us!"

"Without power, I can't take care of my family!" Mr Fruman cried. He paused and then gestured to Peedee, "Well, this one's fine," he then pointed at Ronaldo, "but this one can't take care of himself."

"I'm sure the power will be on tomorrow... I think... Maybe." The mayor whispered.

The crowd grew more inraged.

"Stop pulling our legs! You lied to us and you are lying again!" The eldest Pizza yelled. The crowd roared in agreement.

"Please! Consider things in Beach City!" The Mayor pleaded. A election button*button hits him. "Ow!"

The crowd started throwing more buttons and glow sticks at him, feeling their trust betrayed.

The mayor got into the van then rolled his window down for protection. "If you'd all just calm down -"

"Tip the truck!" Gunga yelled. Mr. Frowney, Mr. Fryman and Peedee ran to the van, pushing it over. The mayor's son stood helplessly watching.

The crowd roared in approval when the van was successfully tipped over.

Connie gasped then ran to the van. She climbed on top before shouting. "Everyone, please!"

The crowd quieted, seeing this small girl demand them.

"The power might not be back on tonight. It might not even be back on for even a year!" Connie cried. The crowd gave yells of shock and dismay.  
"But I know that you're all going to be okay, because it may have taken me a while, but I know each and every one of you!" She looked at the Pizza family, "You're smart," She turned to the Frymans, "you're tough," She looked  
at Lars, Sadie and her father, giving a weak smile. "and you're resourceful. And you all care about each other more than you care about microwave dinners or video games or being able to see in the dark. I know it'll hurt your businesses, I know  
it'll hurt your lives, and I know it might hurt this town and it's government. But, tell me, are we really going to hurt each other?"

The crowd realized her point and murmured among themselves.

"Of course not! We'll face the night together and we'll survive because, we are the light of Beach City!" Connie cried.

The crowd cheered.

Mayor Dewey suddenly climbed out of the van, putting a arm around Connie. "Yes! Thank you, Connie. I couldn't have said it better."

"Don't try to worm your way out of this!" Gunga yelled. The crowd roared and the Mayor flinched. Connie suddenly yelled, "It's okay! It's okay! Mayor Dewey was hiding things from you but he did it because he didn't want you to worry!"

The mayor nodded.

"He was just sheltering you from the truth because he…" Suddenly, Connie realized something, remembering how the gems had brought up cards when they clearly were worried about Amethyst, Pearl, and whoever else was to come. Connie whispered,  
"He loves you."

The crowd nodded and whispered then suddenly started cheering for their mayor. Connie shook her head in surprise, then leapt off, running to the beach house.

Connie entered the house, finding the Temps had lit a cozy fire. Jasper was sitting on the couch, Lapis laying beside her. Peridot was working on her machine. To think, Connie would've found this completely normal, that cards would look not out  
of the ordinary… not like it was supposed to distract her.

"Greetings." Peridot murmered, conctrating on her work.

Connie waited then took a breath. "Um... Do you guys want to talk?"

There was a jarring snap when Peridot nervously disconnected a part of her machine. "What? Why? What is it?" She cried.

Lapis saw her panic and smiled softly. "Um, you, young lady, still owe us a game of cards."

Jasper picked up some cards. "Yeah, and I'm gonna win!"

Connie felt her emotion rise. "N-no. I don't wanna play cards. I wanna talk about Pearl."

Peridot looked up, "Oh, heh, her. She's nothing to worry about, you shouldn't be worrying about he-"

"Yes, I should." Connie snapped. "I know you just don't want me to be scared but just tell me the truth! I can handle it!"

The gems stared silently then Jasper gave out a sigh. She put the cards down. "Kid, Pearl is coming, and we don't know who or what she'll be coming with. She's a modern gem with modern gem technology that's bound to overpower us, to overpower  
me."

Connie listened, shocked.

"Connie, the truth is... we're scared." Jasper sighed in defeat.

Connie gave a tiny whisper, "We've been scared before, right? None of us know what's going to happen, but... that's okay. We can figure things out - together."

Peridot, Lapis and Jasper all nodded silently. Suddenly, the lights came back on…. 


	51. The Return

**Ahhhh! It's time! It's time! I worked so hard to make this the best I could, I hope that this meets everyone's hopes!**

* * *

Connie slammed her fists down on the counter. "Give me the-" Peedee slid a bag of fry bit in front of her. "Oh, well, thank you."

"Meh, I saw you coming." Peedee grinned.

Doug was with Connie and was suprised, "Are you closing up all by yourself?"

The boy smiled happily. "Yeah, it's just me tonight."

Doug gave a nod in acceptance. "Wow, that's a lot of responsibility for a kid your age. Your father must really trust you."

Peedee looked annoyed. "Don't patronize me, sir."

"Bye, Peedee!" Connie called, walking away with her father. They were walking to the beach.

"So, like I was saying," Connie said, skipping along. "Pearl's been shooting huge robots here from space. And when you smash them, they explode!"

Doug frowned. "As a police officer, I take care of all children of Beach City, including my own. I'm not sure if... Do you ever feel like this Gem stuff is too much for you?" Connie frowned, "What do you-" Suddenly, a loud metallic

rumble filled the town. Connie fell over and heard glass shattering from the nearby boardwalk. Everyone stared up at the sky, dumbfounded.

"What was that?" Doug gasped. He then saw Connie staring at the sky, as if exspecting this, which she was. "Connie?"

"That's a ship…" Connie assumed. "We need to get to the Temps."

Connie and Doug ran to the beach and saw Peridot, Jasper and Lapis in front of a telescope.

"The Electric Cannons should be ready." Peridot said. Connie ran up. "A ship's here!"

"We have to assume it's Pearl." Peridot sighed.

"The runt told us she'll be coming. With advanced weapons and reinforcements." Jasper whispered.

"It's happening…" Her father breathed.

Connnie ran to the telescope. She gave a gasp in surprise, seeing the giant hand pointing straight at her.

"Get the electric cannons ready." Jasper said. The electrocuting trio came out from under the deck at a push of a button and Lapis pushed a forth into position.

"Connie, light 'em up." Jasper said, giving the girl a walkie talkie. Connie held it and it went to another that was taped underneath the deck, right by the cannons. She unlocked them by saying, "If every book were perfect, we wouldn't

have poetry."

The cannons lit up, firing four bright and yellow beams of light. They shaped four giant woman. The ship saw it coming and opened itself up, blocking the beams.

"I-It didn't work…." Jasper whispered.

"What now?!"

"Now, I have to take them head on." Jasper whispered, cracking her knuckles.

"We have to take them head on." Lapis murmured, putting an arm on Jasper's shoulder to show that she and Peridot were going to fight beside her. "The whole town might be in danger, and we need to spread that information."

Connie pulled out her cellphone. "I better make a call. Time for some political favors." She pressed the mayor's name and he anwsered with worry.

"Hello?"

"Mayor Dewey! It's me, Connie Universe!" Connie said.

"Connie, what's this thing in the sky? As a politician, pointing fingers make me very nervous."

"Sir, you must listen, the whole town's in danger. We have to evacuate the city." Connie said with determination.

"Evacuate? Hmm. Evacuate. Could be tough. I'll need a catchy slogan…"

A few minutes later, Mayor Dewey drove with his van through the town that now said, "E-VA-CU-ATE. E-VA-CU-ATE. E-VA-CU-ATE."

The mayor leapt out with his megaphone. "People! I need everyone to consider evacuation."

Connie watched from the beach as the town seemed to be panicking. She turned to see her father was packing up his car. "Oh, that's a great idea, Dad. You should leave with the rest of the-" she then spotted her normal, everyday backpack

with her mother's sword on top. Her heart sunk. "Wait… is that my luggage?"

Jasper and Doug glanced at each other with a awkward noise that they both made.

"Who wants to tell her?" Doug sighed. They both turned to Lapis who turned away in dismay. "No, I'm bad at this."

Jasper gave a heavy sigh. "Kiddo, I know you don't think we trust you, and I know more often than not we tell you you're just a kid. But the truth is, we rely on you. You inspires us, bind us, and always remind us why we promised to protect

the planet. You must now be there, for them." She gestured to the people of Beach City, they were in chaos. Mr. Fryman was trying to pry Peedee away from the shop.

"Peedee, come on!"

"But are we coming back!?" Peedee sobbed in panic.

"Ronaldo, help me with your brother!"

Connie felt Jasper bring her into a big hug and then said, "If anything happens, you need to be there to protect them, to lead them. Like your mother always did. That's your destiny."

Connie blinked and then bowed her head. "I-I won't let you down."

"I know."

Connie got into the car, glancing back at the Temps who waved goodbye with smiles on thier faces. Doug had his own plastered on grin. When they had drove away, the Temps smiles faded. Peridot immediately gave a sob. Lapis' own tears were floating

in the air as Peridot was sobbing into her dress, whispering, "I don't want her to leave!" Jasper immediately put her head in her head, clearly shaken, her face like ice.

"We did everything we could." Jasper growled, making Lapis look away in frustration and Peridot look up with her tear soaked face. "Come on, pull it together!"

Doug was so nervous, knowing he needed to keep calm for the girl beside him. He turned up the mirror and saw the hand still pointing at the beach. Connie interrupted his thoughts, being innocently saying, "Maybe when Pearl gets to Earth, she'll

see how wonderful all this life is. Then, maybe... she won't want to hurt anyone."

Doug gave a tiny smile with tears in his eyes. "Just like your mother."

"Y-You think?" Connie smiled softly.

"Oh yeah, pumpkin."

Connie felt happy and turned to look out the window.

"But these other Gems aren't like your mother. They aren't like Jasper, Lapis, or Peridot. They aren't going start caring about people now. They didn't the first time they…" Doug suddenly stopped. Connie turned away from the window.

"The first time they what?"

Doug gave a moan. "I mean, it was thousands of years ago! It's-it's not like I was there!" The man sighed, looking at his daughter. "The Temps should be telling you all this stuff but I get it, I mean, they don't want you thinking

of them like that."

Connie frowned and whispered, "Like what?"

"Like aliens, Connie! Aliens who invaded Earth!" Doug cried.

"What!?" Connie gasped.

"All they do is try to make up for it. They just can't forgive themselves, you understand?" Doug sighed. Connie felt her heart go to stone. "Look, they were doing something awful to the planet and your mother couldn't stand it anymore."

The girl remembered Lapis yelling about how she hadn't asked to made, how Peridot had taked about battling beside her mother… Maybe that was even the reason Jasper was always ready to fight… "She told me that's why she had to turn on her own

kind, her empire. She gave up everything just to stop what they started here and drive the invading Gems off of Earth."

Connie frowned and look up. "Sh-she saved the world, that's good!"

"No such thing as a good war, sweetie. Gems were destroyed, people too... In the end, your mother could only save a handful of her closest friends. If it weren't for her destabilizing powers, man, I don't know." Connie glanced up when

he said destabilizing powers…. But… she had a shield and sword… "B-but hey, let's look on the bright side! We're gonna drive past that waffle place in a couple miles!"

Connie bolted up. "We gotta go back! Turn the car around!"

"No way, the Temps don't want you going back!" Doug cried.

Connie gave a growl in frustration and worry, "I know they're just trying to protect me, but I have to protect them! I have mother's powers, they need me!"

"I need you too!" Doug yelled almost in tears.

Connie had tears in her eyes. "Please Dad, what if they get hurt?!" Her father didn't respond, sweating. "Dad, turn around! Dad! Turn the car around, I'm begging you, Dad, PLEASE!" In a form of anger, Connie grabbed her sword's

hilt and slammed it down on the airbag inflated and launched the girl out in her yellow bubble. The bubble rolled down into a ditch, her body weak and flailing around like a rag doll.

Doug stopped the car immediately. He ran out and tumbled down the hill. "Connie!"

Connie's bubble vanished and she brushed dirt out of her hair and dress. She looked up with tears in her eyes. "Dad…"

"Doug, you and your kid okay?" Mr. Fryman asked, the whole town looked down at them with concern.

"We're fine!" Connie called, wiping tears away. She turned to her father. "Dad, please. I have to go back. I have to! They don't have my powers, do you understand?" Doug was near tears but smiled weakly. "A-alright. Just...

be careful, or I'm gonna run fresh out of family."

Connie gave a sob and hugged her father. "I love you… Stay with everyone and keep them safe. I'll figure out some way to get back to Beach City…" Suddenly, a giant yellow paw was on her head and she turned to see Lion. "This'll work."

Lion ran with Connie on his back. Her sword was sheathed in her mother's scabbard. She had her cellphone up to her ear. "Come on, pick up…"

Steven's voice answered, but Connie didn't see that the phone was to far stuffed in his backpack, along with all of his belongings in the van. "Hey! It's Steven! If it's Lars, YOU FINALLY CALLED! Oh, um, but… Please leave a message after the

beep too." A beep came and Connie sighed. "Um… hey Steven, it's Connie. Just... hoping you've packed your bags and are evacuating, and that's why… you didn't pick up. So… um, the crazy stuff going on with a giant space hand? That's a gem

thing…" She laughed nervously, tears in her eyes. "magical destiny thing, so I'm gonna go fight it, and we all might die, so, uh, I guess call me back if you get this and… if I don't pick up… well… um… you're my best friend and I…"

she paused. "goodbye." She hung up and Lion suddenly warped to the beach. It was now covered in a glaring green glow, bringing all that were in its light. Connie blinked and saw that Turquoise was there with Jasper, and of course, Lapis

and Peri were gone. Turquoise leapt up, water wings appearing on her back. She rose her hands and Connie knew she was trying to summon the water from the ocean. Lapis' power alone could stop the hand! Of course! Turquoise suddenly furrowed her brow.  
/"W-what?" She whispered

Her form glowed and Peridot's voice came, "Lapis?"

Lapis' shaking voice said, "Something's wrong, I can't move the water! I-it's… frozen."

The fusion and Jasper looked at the ship with fear.

"The only gem that can freeze water… can see the future." Jasper whispered. Turquoise looked at the ship trembling. The ship came faster as it came into its descent. "At least," Jasper sighed, "Connie's safe."

"Guys!" Connie cried. She ran over and Turquoise gasped. She deformed in shock, leaving Peridot and Lapis laying on the ground.

"Kid, what are you doing?!" Jasper cried.

Peridot got up and ran to her, hugging her. "My…" she paused as if she was saying the wrong name. "C-Connie! I meant Connie! I-I thought you weren't coming back!"

Lapis ran to them and whispered in panic, "What are you… doing here?! You can't be here! Go, go back! Please!"

"But-" Connie protested.

Jasper suddenly stepped in front of her. "It's too late! Just stay behind us!" Lapis and Peridot leapt to her side, Peridot brandishing her pole and Lapis poised with what small amount of water was in her gem.

The ship landed with a thud. It slowly turned, curling into a fist with the palm facing upwards. Then the fingers unfurled. A shock wave threatened to push them all back. The hand opened. Peridot was shaking slightly, Lapis had her teeth bared

and Jasper was stone faced with her helmet on. Connie kept her sword in its sheath, though she felt she might need it. Suddenly, a ball appeared at the top of the ship. It rolled down a finger and the finger slammed down. The ball opened…

The always delicate and elegant looking Pearl stomped out on the finger, seeing the Temps. "It's them! They're the ones." Suddenly, two gems walked out. One, a delcatie little blue gem with a flowing dress and white hair. The other

held her hand, the same-sized but more muscled red gem. She had black hair and near dark red skin. They glared down at the gems.

"Well, well…." The blue whispered. She looked at all the Temps, stopping at Jasper, not seeing Connie cowering behind her. The gem smirked, "Oh, it's you."

Jasper gave a growl. "Sapphire. I see you brought your partner along with you."

"Of course, Jasper." The red smiled. She kissed Sapphire's hand, making her giggle.

"Ruby, darling, you do know we have to destroy these meddlesome gems, don't get to distracted!" Sapphire said. They turned back and Ruby called, "Amethyst! Get out here! Now!"

Connie felt her heart freeze seeing Amethyst, her friend Amethyst walk out and actually stand next to these women. Amethyst looked at directly at Connie with pity, whispering, "Sorry…" She turned to look up at Ruby and Sapphire. "This

is it. This is their base… like I told you about."

"I'm only telling you once," Jasper growled. "get this useless pearl, over-cooked runt and yourselves outta here, before we make you."

"Yes! Get away from Earth, clods!" Peridot yelled.

"And never, ever come back here again!" Lapis cried, water flaring.

Sapphire laughed, Ruby, Pearl, and Amethyst leapt to the ground while she hovered to it.

"Where's Yellow Diamond?" Ruby growled. "If she's hiding, give her up! I'm here to mash 'er to the ground."

Connie flinched behind Jasper.

"How adorable are you three." Sapphire chuckled, eyeing the Temps. "A useless Peridot, a traitorous soldier who doesn't know what side is right, and… you…" Sapphire eyed Lapis. "I've not met you, but you are the little

Lapis Lazuli sent to… shatter these two and bring the Diamond to us all those years ago." She smirked. "Ah, I plan to shatter you on the ship, my dear, you were the one that betrayed us the most, after all. I wonder if you noticed I froze

the ocean… I couldn't have you stopping us with the flick of your hand."

"I don't even know you!" Lapis yelled, clutching Connie's hand behind her back.

"How stubborn you are." Sapphire smiled. She then saw human hybrid behind her and frowned. "Thehuman child… The one she wants, of course it's with _them_."

The Temps automatically raised thier weapons at her mentioning the girl.

"She's called Connie." Pearl said, walking up.

"Guys, wait." Amethyst said, running up. "She's just a little human kid, cut her some slack."

"This human's what we came for, isn't it?" Ruby growled, cracking her knuckles.

"Hm… I suppose it is, if we can't find Yellow Diamond." Sapphire mused.

Ruby looked at Amethyst and Pearl. "Well, what are you waiting for?! Poof the gems, bring them and the girl to us!"

Amethyst rolled her eyes, shape shifting into a giant wrestler. "Sorry, Connie."

Connie realized she was going to leap over and hurt them. The Temps, her friends, her family, her mothers! "No…"

"Connie, run." Jasper hissed, turning to her.

"No!" Connie yelled.

"I said go!" Jasper yelled. "I'm not about to let you get killed!"

"But this is my home! And you're all my family!" Connie protested.

Suddenly, Amethyst and Pearl leapt at them, weapons ready. Connie suddenly yelled out, leaping in front of them, "I-I'M A CRYSTAL TEMP TOO!" She slammed her hands out in the direction of Pearl and Amethyst, yellow beams coming out.

The two were stopped and yellow lines ran through them. They poofed. Connie looked at her hands, wondering what she had just done.

"Y-Yellow Diamond…" Ruby whispered. Sapphire stared beside her.

Connie collapsed, gave a groan of pain. Jasper to picked the girl up in her strong arms.

Sapphire and Ruby looked at the Temps.

"Oh Jasper, I think you should see a old friend." Sapphire smirked. Ruby nodded, "Yeah, she's been dying to see you again." They grabbed hands and Ruby twirled Sapphire around. They then fused into a tall beauty.

"Garnet." Jasper whispered, lying Connie down on the beach, her waking up.

Garnet walked up, a smirk on her face. "Jasper. It's good to see you, but I'm afraid you have something Rose wants." The fusion smirked down at Connie who glared back.

"You won't touch this kid, mistake." Jasper hissed. She ran to Garnet, her gem destabilizatior out, but Garnet laughed and dodged it. She then took out her own destabilizatior and thrusted it into Jasper. Connie screamed in horror. "When

will you ever learn?" Garnet chuckled. Jasper shook while lines enveloped her. Garnet pulled Jasper close by her hair and sang softly in her ear, "I'm stronger than you…" Jasper poofed, landing in Garnet's hand. Connie sputtered incoherently.

"Jasper!" Peridot and Lapis gasped together.

Suddenly, Pearl and Amethyst regnarated.

Peridot turned and brandished her pole. "Okay, you clods! You want to play dirty?!" She snarled. Garnet unfused.

"I'd rather not." Sapphire smirked, flipping Jasper's gem in her palm, taunting the gems in front of her. "Pearl, just get Yellow Diamond." She said, pointing to Connie.

Peridot stepped in front of the human gem who's eyes leaked tears, though no sound came out staring at the gem.

"Over my shattered gem will you get Connie!"

"Hm, that can be arranged." Pearl smirked.

She leapt to Peridot with lightning speed and they clashed sword and pole. Pearl glanced at Connie, who was still in shock.

Connie felt herself jolt into reality when a robotic voice filled her ears. "Yellow Diamond, prepare to be shattered." She turned to a hologram version of Pearl.

Peridot heard Connie's gasp and turned slightly. Pearl would've stabbed her if Lapis hadn't screamed at Peri to focus.

Lapis scooped up Connie but Hollow Pearl chased them. Lapis remembered her gem stored some water… not a lot, but maybe- She felt a pain shoot through her and her eyes widened in shock.

"Lapis?!" Connie cried, slipping in the woman's sweating and shaking hands.

"C-Connie…" Lapis whispered. Her eyes watered for a moment. Then, she poofed.

Connie screamed as she plummeted to the ground when Peridot's pole wrapped around her.

She turned to see Peridot wincing at Pearl's blade… She poofed as well.

Connie gasped as a hand picked up Lapis' now frozen gem that was beside her, Sapphire's powers must've done it. Garnet smirked at the girl, having fused once more. She grabbed Connie by her collar and pulled the girl up. Connie kicked and

kicked but to no effect. Pearl handed Peridot's gem to her, Garnet clutching already Jasper's and Lapis'.

"Oh, Yellow Diamond…" Garnet chuckled. "Isn't this a _beautiful_ sight?" Connie tried so hard to look unafraid, to show no fear… but she couldn't. "Your base taken… Your precious little Crystal Temps defeated…."

Garnet whispered, displaying the gems in her hands. "You failed!" Connie was knocked out by a swiftpunch to the head.

* * *

 **Tell me what you're favorite changes were to his episode, because I loved making it, and want to know what you think! Give lots of feedback!**


	52. Jail Break

It was all darkness when suddenly a faint humming filled her ears. Connie awoke with a gasp, vaulting up. She glanced around and saw she was in a cell with some odd yellow forcefield blocking the exit. "Peridot? Lapis?" She then rembered  
Jasper poofing… right into Garnet's hand. "Jasper!" The girl got up and ran to the barrier. "Where are they?"

Suddenly, she heard a scream echo through the halls. "Let go of me!" Lapis' voice cried.

"Don't you hurt her, you clods!" Peridot's voice growled.

"Yes, well you're next." She heard Sapphire laugh.

"Lapis!" Connie gasped. She hesitated but touched the barrier. The lines went up her body and she felt a tickling sensation go up her spine. She walked out and shivered. She then started to run. Her sword was gone… where was it?!  
She needed it!

"Lapis! Lapis, I'm coming!" Connie called. She suddenly was grabbed and pulled back. She gave a cry, thinking it must've been Garnet but it was Amethyst.

"Connie," Amethyst breathed, "How did you get out?!"

Connie gave a growl, pulling her arm away. "How could you?! Y-You told them where we were! Why would you do that?! We're friends!"

The gem sighed. "It's complicated, Connie…. I was over cooked, owe Rose my life, joined her lackies, simple as that."

Connie was speechless until she heard Lapis' yells nearby. "Lapis! I need to get to Lapis!"

Amethyst grabbed her again before she could run. "Wait."

"Let me go!" Connie growled.

"You'll thank me soon." Amethyst murmured. She suddenly pulled Connie's sword and scabbard from behind her. Connie gasped in suprsie. "Amethyst… thank you."

The gem smirked. "Told ya so."

"Come on," Connie said, putting the sword on her back. "escape with me and the Temps, we can free you from being Homeworld's slave!"

"Kiddo, Quartz soldiers are one in a million, but I'm the runt of 'em." Amethyst sighed. "I belong to Rose Quartz, she thought I had a use, you realize that, right? Besides, P and G are my teammates, my friends, we are the Crystal  
Gems, warriors of Homeworld. Rose saved me."

"These are your friends?! Your family, the ones you were trying to get home to?!" Connie gasped.

"Yeah." Amethyst shrugged. "Connie, I've caused you enough harm already, just get out of here, the only reason I'm not stopping you is you're my buddy, you saved me-"

"Just like Rose Quartz did! Doesn't that mean anything to you, Amethyst?!" Connie cried. Amethyst flinched.

They suddenly heard a cry.

"Lapis!" Connie gasped. She turned Amethyst. "I'm going. Are you coming or not?"

Amethyst was silent.

Connie sighed. The girl drew her sword and ran to Lapis' yells.

She heard Pearl say, "Once I shatter this Lapis Lazuli, we must go back for the Cluster!"

"That doesn't matter." Sapphire growled. "Set the cordints to Homeworld once you've done your task."

"Let me g-g-go!" Lapis yelled, she was stuttering.

"Connie?!" She turned and saw Jasper sitting in a cell surrounded by a barrier.

"Jasper!" Connie cried. She ran to her and thrust her hand in. Jasper looked at the gap and slowly put her hand through. "How?"

"I think it's my hybridism." Connie explained.

Suddenly, they heard a voice, "Saffy was right, you are out."

Connie turned and saw Ruby in the doorway. Jasper slid out and Connie readied her sword. She wished she knew how that destabilizing power worked from earlier.

Sapphire stepped in behind Ruby and sighed, "Pearl's busy…" She cocked her head seeing Connie with her sword. "And it appears we've found who saved Amethyst, seeing as she hasn't killed Yellow Diamond yet and that she's out of her  
cell… Well, time to separate them." She said with a small sigh.

Connie thought she meant separate her and Jasper, but Jasper knew exactly what she meant. They were going to pry Connie's gem out of her body, ripping Yellow Diamond out and leaving Connie's organic body, her human body, to die.

"Connie, get out of here." Jasper whispered weakly.

Connie turned and saw her face was pale. "Are you okay?"

Garnet appeared, Ruby and Sapphire had fused, and cracked her knuckles. "Now… Surender Yellow Diamond over."

"Connie, her name is Connie, Garnet." Jasper hissed. "She's like a fusion, but with a human. Sapphire, imagine if you ever unfused, that Ruby would die because of it. That is what is going to happen if you take her gem out.  
Yellow Diamond might be out, but Connie, her kid… heck, I consider her my kid by now, she will die."

Connie felt her stomach drop. She hadn't known about that.

"Oh, you feel like she belongs to you?" Garnet laughed. Then she smirked, "More of a reason to kill this Connie." She suddenly leapt at the girl with lighting speed. Jasper slid in front of her, blocking Garnet with her  
helmet. They slid into a battle area nearby.

"Connie… Peri and Lapis are in another room, get to them, and get out of here!" Jasper grunted.

Connie hesitated. "But, Garnet, she's a massive gem!"

Jasper gave a weak chuckle, "She'd two weak little gems pretend like they know what you really need for fusion, they need love, but they also need something else."

"What's that?"

"Strength." Jasper then shoved Connie forward quickly, in the direction of the other room.

Connie ran, escaping Garnet.

"Pity." Garnet muttered, throwing Jasper away. Jasper grunted. "Jasper, I've seen what you really are."

Jasper got up and gave a dark chuckle then a laugh. "No, you haven't." She then started to sing, " _This is Jasper. Here forever. And I'm never going down at two little gems like you because my strength is to the brim. And every part of me is saying "Go get em"._ "  
Garnet gave a growl, knowing Jasper was taunting her with her own song and ran at her. " _Cause, my family's not gonna follow Homeworld's rules. Come at me without any of your fancy tools. Let's go, just me and you. Let's go, just one on two_."  
Jasper made her helmet. Garnet ran at her and ducked past her punches. " _Go ahead and try and hit me if you're able. Can't you see that my skills are not a fable?_

 _So, if I were you two, I would prepare. Because you made my child scared! And you're not gonna stop what my family's attempting to do, We are gonna forever protect our planet from you_." Jasper avoided Garnet's electricity. " _So, don't try to stop this fire from roaring, if you throw me away, I'll coming back soaring! Surprise, I am filled, O-o-o-o-of, Lo-o-o-o-ove."_

While she was singing, Connie ran into the room. She gasped. Peridot was screaming in a cell and Pearl held Lapis' arms behind her back, a sword pointed at her gem that was pulsing. Lapis sputtered in pain, tears running down her face. Pearl was  
trying to shatter her! Connie ran to Peri's cell, releasing her. "Get to the controls and turn this ship around!" Peridot nodded and ran to the panel, thrusting her hands into the controls. Connie drew her sword and ran at Pearl with a war  
cry. Lapis fell to the ground with a cry as Pearl released her and pointed her sword at Connie. "Ha! What could a little human know about a sw-" Connie blocked Pearl's swipe and smirked, "I'm a natural." Connie slid under the sword,  
pulling her own with grace as Pearl fought her. They clashed, both looking like they were dancing as they fought, a master against a natural.

"Don't touch that, you twerp!" Pearl growled, running to Peridot. Connie slid in front of her and gave short yells as she parried. Pearl suddenly flung the girl'ssword away, leaving her sword pointed at the gem on her chest.  
Suddenly, a fist of water punched her away and picked up Connie's sword. It gave it back and Lapis gave a mocking curtsy to Pearl who growled. "How's that for a youngtraitor?" Lapis smirked.

Connie looked at a camera screen and saw Jasper still fighting Garnet.

" _O-o-o-o-of, Lo-o-o-o-ove. Lo-o-o-o-ove._

 _Lo-o-o-o-ove._ " Jasper sang. Garnet avoided her head butts. Jasper grabbed her leg suddenly and threw her up into the celling. Garnet leapt at Jasper, punching her repeatedly into the ground, deeper and deeper. They were near the electric core…  
Jasper stood. " _This is for the planet. This is for the town. And if you think you can stop me, then I'll let you know, you're going down. Because I have a reason, why this fight in me will never end,_ " Jasper made her helmet. " _And that is this plantet_ ,"  
Garnet smirked. " _And my friends!_ " Jasper growled, narrowing her eyes. Jasper dodged her punches, leaping over Garnet. She took the destabilizatior from the gem's armor and tried to thrust it into her. " _Go ahead and try and hit me if you're able. Can't you see that my skills are not a fable?_ "  
Garnet punched her away and Jasper came running back, trying to poof her. " _Because I finally know that you're not something to be afraid of, do you truly think that you've seen what I'm made of?"_ Jasper laughed. Garnet kept punching  
at the gem and missing while she kept singing, "Because our group is more just two of them." She sang referring to Lapis and Perodot. " _And everything we care about, is what that child is. So, this is for the Temps, the cause I believe in," Jasper smirked as she grabbed Garnet's arm. "This is for beating back Homeword's sin!_ "  
She threw Garnet into the life source. It exsploded and the ship started going down. Jasper ran smiling and singing still, " _Surprise, I am filled, O-o-o-o-of, Lo-o-o-o-ove. L-o-o-o-o-ove, And that's what makes me so much stronger than you._ "

Peridot fell from the controls and Lapis, Connie, along with Pearl fell over. Lapis attempted to freeze Pearl in ice but she leapt down, a escape pod appearing for her. The Temps rushed to the window and saw the pod rocketing down to Earth. Suddenly,  
the door opened. "Jasper!" The team cried.

"Come on! This ship's gonna blow!" Jasper yelled.

"What about Amethyst?!" Connie cried.

"No time!" Jasper cried. She grabbed Connie, Lapis and Peridot and held them close.

Amethyst not far away sighed in dismay…

The ship crashed.

Lion soon ran unmong the clutter until he roared a pile off of Connie and the Temps, who all safely were in her bubble. Jasper ruffled her her. "Nice one, kiddo."

The bubble popped and they rose. "I can't belevile…. Homeworld, shattering, you knew Garnet and you never told me one of our enemies was a fusion!" Connie sputtered.

"Ha, Garnet wasn't always around you know." Lapis winked. Connie glanced up. "Huh?"

"I'll tell you on your birthday, you'll be older than." Jasper smiled. The Temps stood there for a moment, listening to the quiet of the waves when suddenly, a hand popped out from the ruble. Ruby got out and groaned. She gasped. "Sapphire?!  
Sapphire!"

Sapphire gave lay nearby and Ruby ran to her. They kissed passionately until Jasper coughed, "Um… I'm pretty sure I beat you, I won, score settled."

They turned and fused quickly. Garnet gave a chuckle. "You won? Please, you didn't win this war."

Jasper gave a growl.

"I just need to be a little bit stronger and then-" Suddenly, the ruble shifted again. Amethyst shoved it off. She fell to the ground and Garnet walked up. "G-Garnet…" Amethyst whispered softly.

Garnet smirked. "Amethyst, you know who we need right now?"

"Ugh, do we have to get Pearl right now?" Amethyst groaned. She then turned and saw the Temps and she looked back at Garnet. "Y-You mean…"

"We need Suglite. Fuse with me."

Connie gasped in suprise but Amethyst gave a squeal. "Really?! W-We haven't fused in decades! Why now?" She then felt Connie staring and relaized it. "You… want her… to hurt Connie?"

"What?"

"Yellow Diamond." Amethyst rephrased.

"And to shatter the rest." Garnet shrugged. Amethyst looked at Connie, at the Temps. "Amethyst, you love being fused with me, don't lie about that. Besides, didn't these gems in prison you? Kept you away from home?" The  
fusion smirked. "Just say yes already."

Connie shook her head but Amethyst sighed. She slowly started to dance and Connie gave a yell, trying to stop her. Lapis grabbed the girl though. "NO!"

Amethyst danced and ran to Garnet. She phased into the other gem and they were gone. In thier place was a ginormous fusion. Suglite. The Temps shook with fear. Suglite gave a laugh. She formed Garnet's gauntlets and Amthyst's whip to make  
a club like device. The fusion lifted the whip into the air, about to crush them when her arm suddenly jerked backward, the whip tangling her. "Huh?!"

Another whip appeared and wrapped around her. "Hey, what's going on?!"

"What are you doing?" Garnet said through the fusion.

Amethyst's voice came. "G, I know you want to shatter the Jasper, and the Lapis Lazuli for revenge and the Peridot's a bonus, but I'm not letting you hurt Connie." Two of the fusion's arms started pulling the fusion away. The ground rumbled  
and cracked open. "Heh, I'm sick of being the useless runt on Homeworld! Now, I'm useful for something, keeping you here, forever!"

"Amethyst!" Connie cried.

Jasper and Lapis gave each other a single look that seemed to say, Would this be us in a different life?

"Let's stay here, cause this is my home, and you're never getting out!" Sugilite yelled in Amethyst voice. They sunk under the earth and the crack closed. Connie and the Temps started, still shocked.

"Heh, so much for being made of love." Jasper smirked. The others glanced at her when Connie's phone rung. She slowly opened it.

"Connie?! Connie, are you okay?!" Steven's voice cried. Connie merely stared at the beach where the fusion had disappeared. "... Connie?" 


	53. Full Disclosure

Connie was still staring at the ground. Her eye was swollen from Garnet's swift punch to her head and she only then noticed. Steven was still on the phone.

"That.. was horrifying… We're so shattered once Homeworld finds out about this." Peridot whispered dryly.

"P, Homeworld already wants us shattered." Jasper shrugged. "It went pretty well for my standards, I mean, I beat Garnet, right?"

"Ugh, and I thought the fusion was the only one still wanting revenge."

"So, magical destiny stuff happened, right?" Steven asked Connie over the phone. "What was it? What was the hand? Are you okay?"

"We won! Oh! We're safe!" Lapis cried, twirling Connie around. She laughed.

"Is that Lapis?" Steven asked.

Lion put a paw on Connie and she grinned. "Ah man, Steven, it was so cool! Where do I even start?! It's been a ton of magical destiny stuff!"

She then heard someone calling for her. She gasped. "Dad!" She held the phone closer and said, "Steven, gotta go, talk to you later!" She hung up and ran to her father. "Dad! Dad!"

"Oh! Thank the heavens you're okay!" They hugged and Doug kissed her forehead. " I saw the spaceship start to leave and then it crashed so I came back and... ohhh" He saw Connue's eye. "We should put ice on that straight  
awar… So, I guess those criminals were no match for the Crystal Temps, huh?"

"No way, they were super strong and amazing at fighting!"

"But you were able to beat them back?"

"I'm afraid not. They totally won this. This fusion, Garnet, was super tall and evil and knocked me unconscious. Then they abducted me onto the ship because they wanted to take me away forever. And then they tried to kill the Temps,  
and we crashed the ship and I almost was killed in the process!" Connie cried.

"What did they want from you?!" Doug gasped.

Connie sighed. "Well, they wanted to pry mother's gem off my body, forcing her out of me and destroying me because I'm human, and then they would have their leader examine my dead body and shatter mom…"

Doug was breathing heavily, picturing them ripping the life out of his baby girl. "W-will more Homeworld gems come after for you?!"

Connie paused then whispered, "I… don't know."

Doug gave a worried sigh, then quickly said, "Connie. I-I'm supportive and very proud of you. And I'll be right back." He then ran to his car and scrambled through his CDs. "Got to calm down. Where's my… Where's my relaxing  
music CD?" Her picked one up and put it in. Loud rock music played and he yelled, "Wrong one!" He repitly slammed the eject button. "Stop! Eject!"

Connie winched watching him and her phone started to ring. She looked down at it and saw it was Steven. She glanced back at her father who tried to relax but clearly couldn't.

A few minutes later, Connie was walking down a street in town. She held her phone, rehearsing what she would tell Steven. "So Steven. Please don't cry or be concerned about me. But that ship… it tried to take me into space forever. But  
it didn't, it didn't. I'm back and everything is," She felt her hand go through where a window should've been. She looked up and saw the bookstore's windows were all shattered. She looked around and saw ruble from the ship everywhere. She ran  
away, trying again. "Steven, um, it turns out, there's a lot more Gems out there than we thought and they know about my mom. And I think they wanna... rip the life out of me?" Connie gave a nervous laugh."Hey Steven that... that message  
I left you was— was just a dream!" She gave a laugh and then murmered, "He can just check his inbox…" Connie walked up a hill that was above the beach and gave a sigh. She looked down and saw the destroyed ship still on the beach. "Yooo!"  
She suddenly heard. She turned to see Ronaldo running up.

"Hey Ronaldo." Connie smiled weakly.

"Didn't you hear? Mayor Dewey is calling everyone back into the city. We can go home now." Ronaldo said, looking up. Connie looked sad and he noticed, "Oh! I see... you come up here to brood too."

"Brood?" Connie said with a face that looked like she had eaten something odd.

"Yes, Connie. That's just what people like us do. Suffer quietly, shouldering the knowledge no one else can bear." Ronaldo whispered.

Connie gave a small nod.

"As an aficionado of the weird yourself, you've probably noticed ordinary people fear the cold, leaded anchor of the truth. The abyss is no Sunday swan drive."

"Yeah… My dad flipped out when I told him." Connie whispered.

"Sounds typical." The teen said, looking to the distance. "But it's a good reminder. This is no easy path we've chosen here. There are... sacrifices. Look at them all down there, Connie." She looked down and saw Beach City.  
"It's our duty to let those simple people live out their simple lives, without ever knowing the burden of being friends with us."

Connie gave a weak grin and whispered, "At least we can be there for each other."

The teen suddenly gasped. "Is that giant hand from the sky sitting right in the middle of the beach?! I gotta get some of this for my blog!" He ran down the hill, leaving Connie alone once more.

Connie heard waves hitting the cliff. "Everybody told me Gem stuff's dangerous, I guess I didn't believe it. Until now, Dad always seemed apprehensive, and now he's really freaking out, what do I do?" She glanced down at the phone in  
her hands. "I don't want that for you." Suddenly, her phone rang and Connie slid to the ground, dropping it. She covered her ears. When the ringing ceased, Connie looked at it with sadness. "Everybody tells me life is precious on the  
planet Earth," She sang, picking the phone up.

She scrolled through pictures. One was of her making a funny face and Steven laughing. Another was of them at a restaurant. Once, Connie had taken a picture of Steven making a sand castle. Then, in another, he noticed. In the next, he was making  
a funny face. Connie smiled wistfully but it faded away. "and that means you, and I have to protect you. What if somehow you get hurt? What do I do? I don't want that for you." She put it down and started singing along with the ringtone  
which continued. She closed her eyes with gritted teeth, remembering the horrors she had faced. "What am I going to tell you?" She remembered the ship coming, Jasper getting poofed, Lapis with a blade to her back on her gem, "You're  
better off not knowing the trouble I'm in, I don't want you to worry, about what I've just seen, about where I've just been. You don't have to be a part of this, I don't think I want you to be. You don't need this. You don't need me…" She shutter  
remembering the ship exploding, Ruby, Sapphire, how Garnet and Amethyst had fused into Sugilite. She kept singing, and looked to the sky. The girl grabbed her phone, and looked at the beach. She felt her heart break but slid the call to ignore. She  
gave a sigh and walked away.

A while later, the Temps were talking.

"Why can't I just wash it away?" Lapis groaned.

"Because the pepole will notice it floating in the water, Lapis." Jasper grunted. "It will eventually come back."

"Would you two stop bickering? Humans are going to return soon!" Peridot cried.

Connie looked out the window, whispering, "We've got to keep them off the beach. If any humans got access to gem technology, they could really hurt themselves. Maybe we should shut them out," Connie pulled down the blinds and narrowed  
her eyes. "For good."

"Oh! We did have that fence once!" Peridot squealed excitedly. "We should make a new one! With barbed wire!"

"We should make a moat this time, and then I can raise the water, do some trick, and I'll be the crocodile!" Lapis shapeshifted her head into a alligator's.

"Ugh, no." Jasper groaned.

Lapis gave a pout. "Why not? It'd be fun?"

"You always say you'll be a crocodile but end up never doing it, clod!" Peridot huffed.

"Um, we're not putting up a fence either." Jasper said.

"But-"

"Kids like Connie need to see thier parents and thier friends often or they might isolate themselves." Jasper exsplained. Lapis gave a tiny smile and Jasper moaned, "Don't gave me that look, you're the one who made me  
read parenting books. Ugh, I can't believe I'm this sappy."

"No, I don't!" Connie cried, walking away. " I can't keep clinging to the vestiges of my humanity. It's time I got serious."

"What's a ves-teeges?" Jasper whispered, trying to pronounce it as well as Connie had. Lapis shrugged.

Suddenly, Connie's phone started to ring. She flinched and gave a sigh.

"Connie, is your device trying to explode again?" Peridot whispered.

"For the last time," Connie gave a sigh in defeat. She couldn't win this battle. "It's Steven, trying to call me, but I can't face him anymore." Lapis peeked out the window while Peridot walked up, "So you're just  
going to ignore him, forever?"

"It's the responsible thing to do." Connie sighed.

"YES!" They turned to Jasper and she shrugged, "What? I don't like him."

"Huh, well would you look here, he's coming up the steps right now." Lapis whispered.

"What?!" Connie cried.

Suddenly, Steven knocked on the door. Peridot answered. "Oh! Steven! Steven, Connie's friend! Steven… what's your last name?"

"Demayo." Steven laughed. He then looked concerned, "Is Connie home?"

Peridot watched Connie sneak out the window and past Steven. "Um… No…."

"Is she okay? I'm just really worried. She hasn't been answering her phone, I don't know if her healing spit works on herself, and also… that space hand was awesome and I wanna hear more about it." Steven explained. Connie inched behind  
him. "Uh... I- I don't know. I don't understand your human relationships." Peridot chuckled. "So... uhm... goodbye!" She shut the door. Steven gave a sigh and turned around. Jasper pulled Peridot away from the door behind him.  
Steven then saw Connie running on the beach. "Connie?! Connie, it's me, Steven!"

When she kept running, he ran after her. "Connie! Wait for me, please!" Connie ran into a corridor of ship and Steven followed. He looked at the technology with surprise. What had happened? He ran out and found Connie had vanished. He  
looked around. "Connie! Connie? Are you in trouble? Is something wrong?" Steven cried, tears in his eyes. "What happened?! Did _I_ do something wrong?"

Connie was hiding behind part of the thumb. She gave a tiny moan, of course it wasn't him!

"Please, don't be mad at me!" Steven whispered. "Is that why you're avoiding me?"

Connie moaned again.

Steven wiped away a tear and took out his phone. He dialed Connie's number.

Her phone started to ring but she immediately hung up.

Steven looked around, "Connie, I know you're here! Why are you hiding from me?"

Connie sighed and texted him.

Steven looked at it and read out loud, "I don't want to be… friends anymore?" Steven gave a sniff. "But… why?" He called her and she answered this time.

"Connie?" Steven whispered.

"I can't be with you anymore," Connie sighed. "I have a destiny."

"I know!" Steven cried. "Because of that, I have no idea why you hang out with me…. But, can you at least tell it to my face? I don't believe you. Tell it to my face, and I'll… I'll leave you alone, and never… never see you again  
or hang out or… Please, just tell me, why?!" Steven gasped when Connie climbed up the thumb. She leapt down with a grunt. The girl walked up to him wordless but suddenly hugged him.

"W-What's happening?" Steven whispered.

Connie gave a laugh, a single tear rolling down her face. "I'm so sorry. I still want to be friends, don't ever think different…" They parted and Connie sighed.

Steven gasped, "Your eye! Connie, are you okay?! W-what happened to you?!"

"I didn't want you to worry about it." Connie whispered.

"I've been worried sick all day, Connie! What do you think I'm doing here?" Steven cried.

"I just wanted to protect you."

"Please, just tell me everything." Steven sighed.

Connie and Steven sat on the beach, Connie had explained everything.

"So, the gem from the mirror and a big gem made out of two little gems… made a giant woman and went underground?"

"Pretty much, and... Pearl escaped while the ship was coming down. She could be anywhere." Connie whispered.

"Whoa..."

"Are you okay?"

"Are _you_ okay? You're the one that's been through everything. The least I could do is just listen." Steven smiled.

"I can't ask you to do that." Connie sighed.

"I want to, Connie. I want to be a part of your universe!" Steven cried. Connie blushed and giggled. Suddenly, her father drove up behind him.

"Pumkin! There you are! Oh good evening Steven, do you need a ride home?" Doug asked.

Steven waved and Connie smiled, "Dad, are you doing okay?"

"I got it out of my system. I'm back to being your amazing dad." Doug grinned. The car drove through the rest of Beach City, and Connie saw everyone was home, everyone was getting better. For a moment… perhaps Connie could have a break.

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	54. Joy Ride

The Temps were cleaning up the debris on the beach from the warship. Connie picked up tiny little pieces and whispered, "Guys, don't you think we should pick up all the the pieces?"

"Nah, that's too much work." Jasper muttered. "We can just get the big pieces, I don't think they'll notice the little ones." She heaved a big chunk out.

Lapis swept up a big piece of ship with her water. She washed the sand out.

"And we need to start looking for the Pearl's escape pod also, assuming she even made it to Earth." Peridot muttered, dropping some pieces in a pile.

"Yeah,there's a lot of work ahead of us." Jasper sighed. Connie dropped the pieces she had previously picked up. She walked to the other end of the beach. She ran to a part and after much effort, pried it out of the ground. "Ha,  
that's a big one." She turned and started digging once more. She was lost in her own thoughts, wondering what she and the Temps were going to do after this. Prehaps go to lunch? Or maybe just relax at home? Or maybe even search for Suglite, though  
they didn't like to bring her up much. "Connie!"

Connie gasped in suprsie and looked up. She glanced over and saw Jenny, Buck, and Sour Cream.

"Yo." Buck said.

"Hey Connie, welcome back to Earth." Jenny smirked.

Connie felt her heart pound, "What?! Who told you?!"

"You looked a million miles away, girl." Buck said.

Connie blushed, cheeks pink with heat, sweat and embarrassment. "Oh, um, sorry, I was zoning out.

Buck smiled. "We were about to go chill in the parking lot and freak out some squares."

"You should come with." Jenny said.

"Er, I don't have anything against squares. I like all basic shapes.." Connie whispered.

"Yeah, that's what I'm talking about. You got that much-needed counterpart to our cynical world view. You have to come."

"It's good energy flow." Sour Cream added with a strange tone.

"Sorry, but I got a lot of important gem work to do. Maybe later." Connie said

"Aww." Jenny sighed.

"Bummer." Sour Cream said.

Well, catch you later, then." Buck said with a wave. Connie watched them go and sighed.

* * *

Connie lay moaning in pain in her bed that night. "Ugh, the calluses on my hands have calluses... A working woman'sburden is truly a heavy one." Connie sighed, rolling off. A sudden thud came from her window and she looked up.  
"Huh?" She snuck to the window and gasped as a slice of pizza hit the window. "What the-" Another piece hit as the first was sliding down and she peeked out. Buck, Jenny, and Sour Cream were down there, with a box of pizza. Connie  
ran down the steps after changing and opened the door. She walked over to the teens. "What are you guys doing here?" The girl asked in a hushed whisper.

"C'mon. It's time to hang out." Buck said.

"We can't hang out at night! I have to sleep! I'll get in big trouble if I sneak out and might get hurt if it's dark and-"

"Night is whatever you want it to be, time is an illusion." Sour Cream murmered.

"Aren't you done working for the day?" Buck asked. "Besides we're responsible, we'll keep you safe.

"Okay…" Connie whispered, nervous. "If you say so."

"But first, we have to deliver the rest of this pizza to Mr. Frowney." Buck said.

* * *

Connie sat in the front with Jenny and the boys sat in the back in her delivery car.

"Whoo! Wind in your face, that's what I'm talking about!" Jenny laughed. Connie cracked a small smile.

"Breathe deep, Connie. This is the smell of freedom." Buck said. Connie inhaled and laughed nervously, "Freedom smells like pepperoni."

"That's just the car." Jenny chuckled.

"You know what food definitely doesn't smell like freedom? Fish!" Sour Cream growled.

"Why fish?" Connie asked, turning to him.

Jenny gave a groan. "Uh oh, here we go."

"My step-dad was all on my case today saying-" He suddenly made mumbling noises, making Connie grin. "I'm just like, I don't want to be a fisherman. Everyone knows you can't rave in a raincoat, step-dad!"

"At least he only bugs you about one thing. My dad's gotta say something about everything I do, 'cause I'm the mayor's son. And I'm like, you can't tell me what to do, I'm the mayor's... wait." Buck hesitated and failed to say more.

Jenny laughed. "Puh-lease, you're are walking in cake with that talk. You guys don't even know what bad is until you have a sister. Look, I don't know why I have to spell it out that I'm the evil twin and she's the good one! Don't ask me to  
help you with your homework, I'm at some metal concert."

"Family stuff is tricky." Connie muttered. The others nodded in agreement. "A few months back, my dad and the Gems grounded me from books."

The other kids were silent.

"... and then they banned me from TV."

She got a reaction out of that one. The teens all seemed shocked and surprised, letting out cries of indignation.

Connie countiued whispering, "And then I found out that the Gems are from outer space, and are rebels, and there are other Gems out there that want us dead because they think we're traitors. And they tried to take me hostage because they think  
I'm my mother, who used to be their leader… that also turned on them. And maybe I kinda am her?" The girl sighed, "I wish I could talk to Jasper, Lapis, and Peri about it, but I think they kinda blame me for my mother not being around…."

There was a dead silence and Jenny turned off the radio. "That's heavy." She breathed.

"I guess." Connie shrugged.

"But you always seem so upbeat. You're a real champ, Connie Universe." Buck said.

"Yeah, I'd turn to fishing in a heartbeat if it meant not dealing with," Sour Cream suddenly gasped and pointing to something in the distance. "thaaaaat!"

The car screeched to a halt.

"What?! What did I hit?! What is it?!" Jenny panted.

"Glowing." Sour Cream said. They turned and saw a light turquoise glow coming from the corn field.

"We gotta check it out." Sour Cream said.

"I'm down." Buck shrugged.

Jenny turned the car to the feild and started to drive. "Alright, hold on."

Once they were close enough, the kids walked to the glow. "That's, like, as bright as like 600 glowsticks." Sour Cream whispered

The teens peered down into a crater and Connie gasped in suprsie. "Pearl's escape pod." The girl took a breath and said, "Okay, everybody step back. This is a gem machine and could be extremely dangerous."

"Check it out." Sour Cream said, picking up a rock.

"What are you doing?!" Connie hissed. The teen threw the rock onto the pod. "Boom!"

"Whoa, stop! Pearl might still be in there."

"Who's that?" Buck laughed. The kids climbed down to it.

"This biz is empty." Jenny said.

Buck gave a laugh. "It looks so busted."

"You need to get away from there!" Connie cried, pulling Jenny away.

"You need to relax. It's not doing anything." Jenny huffed.

"It's not just the pod." Connie exhaled. "This means Pearl is just out there somewhere, trying to hurt the earth!"

"Not cool, Earth forever!" Buck yelled. He started kicking the pod, as if that would do anything.

"Here come the rocks!" Sour Cream dropped loads of rocks on top of it.

"Connie, come take a selfie with me and this thing." Jenny said, taking out her phone.

"No, Jenny, I'm serious!" Connie cried.

"So am I." Jenny replied. She turned to Sour Cream who sat on the pod. "Sour Cream, what about you?"

"Sure, I'm down with whatever." The teen shrugged.

"Buck?"

"Nah, I like to just experience the moment for what it is sometimes." Buck paused, then said, "Plus the lighting is weird."

"Ugh, okay. Connie. Last call. I got funny stickers!" Jenny said.

They started taking selfies, Connie slowly and stiffly inched in over time. She soon started to smile. Jenny soon put fun stickers on them. Jenny

"These are so good!" Jenny squealed afterwards.

"Do.. Do I look ok?" Connie asked nervously.

"You look great," Jenny said reassurinly. She backed away. "look, stay right there, I'm going to take one more.." She then got a idea seeing Connie in front of the thing. She gasped. "Connie, you should get in there."

"What?" Connie gulped. She blushed, "I… shouldn't."

"Just for a second, one picture." Jenny pleaded. Connie stuttered, trying to protest but Buck already gently placed her in. Connie climbed and looked out smiling.

"Okay,ready! 3, 2…" She started taking pictures and Connie's presence activated it!

"Dude!" Sour Cream gasped, turning around to look. Connie was mystified looking at the controls.

"Oh my gosh, Connie! Whaaaaaa! This is so cool!" Jenny squealed, walking around her. Connie moved her hands slightly forward and the machine started to walk with her in it. She gasped in suprise. "Whoa…"

"Connie, how are you doing that?" Jenny whispered.

"I think it responds to my hands…" Connie whispered, trying to make it walk again, it worked. Connie gave a sigh. "I really shouldn't be playing with this. I have to take this back to the Temple immediately."

"No way, you just got it working!" Jenny moaned.

Buck nodded, adding on, "C'mon, aren't you your own mom? You can do whatever you want." Connie was going to say the Temps were her mothers truly, but Sour Cream said, "Yeah, you gotta do some donuts in that thing!"

"At least a dozen, baker's dozen." Buck added on with a smirk.

"Seriously, Connie, you've been under a lot of pressure. Don't you think you deserve to have a little fun?" Jenny whispered. Connie bit her lip.

That night, they played with the pod, Connie finally, after weeks of stress, having wild, free, fun. They raced the car against the pod, Connie winning everytime, the kids rose on top of it while Connie ran in the pod. They were giggling in joy  
all night, for hours and hours.

"You really got the hang of that thing, huh?" Jenny grinned later.

Connie smiled with a happy flush. "Yeah, it always hooks to the right." She then rembered what she should've done hours ago. "I must get it back to the Temps though." The kids gave groans in sadness. Connie looked over and saw  
a giant haystack. She grinned. One more exscuse for freedom. "... Right after I jump that haystack!"

The teens gave cheers and Connie made the thing go. She made it leap over the haystack.

The teens ran over when it fell over. "I'm okay!" Connie giggled, getting it up. "It's not actually so bad if you give it a little…" She punched the top of the pod and suddenly a black shield closed over the gap. Connie  
gasped, not able to see any one.

"Connie?" Jenny whispered. A shockwave came out, knocking the teens away.

"Guys?" Connie gasped. Suddenly, translucent liquid, like the one the robonoids used before, filled the pod. Connie gasped and held her breath, thinking she may not be able to breath. She soon couldn't hold it anymore and exhaled. She  
could breathe. Outside, the pod shot lasers everywhere and it sent a flare up into the sky, making a pink diamond shape. The kids ran everywhere, screaming.

"Connie! What's going on?" Jenny cried. Connie pounded her fists on the shield, then saw the Temps in the distance. She gasped, "Guys!"

"Heh, heh! I knew it! That flare led us right to the escape pod!" Peridot cried in triumph. Lapis saw the humans and yelled, "Are you okay?!"

"Help! Over here!" The teens screamed.

Connie pounded harder. "Jasper! Lapis! Peridot!"

"We'll save you, weaklings!" Peridot yelled, leaping up. Her pole flated and hit the pod like it was a racket to a tennis ball. "I can't believe it. That clody Pearl is still inside."

"She's probably weak from the landing. Don't hold back, give her all you got!" Jasper yelled

Lapis gave a nod. Water came out of the gem and wrapped around the pod. It froze over and landed with a sharp crack as the ice weighed it down to the ground.

Jasper walked up, her helmet appearing and taking out her destabilizatior.

"Wait! No!" The other teens screamed. Connie's ears were ringing after the fall to the ground. She glanced up and saw Jasper unknowingly smirking at her. "You know, Pearl, you got a lotta nerve taking refuge here! Of all places!"  
The gem laughed darkly.

"Jasper?" Connie whispered.

"But I don't know what you get off attacking defenseless humans in your dead-beat escape pod! Maybe cause it's the only thing you can stand up to? Heh, hasn't Garnet told you I can mash _her_ into the ground now? A dantiy Pearl will be  
no problem."

"Jasper! It's me, Connie, can you hear me? Jasper!" Connie shouted, pounding louder and louder.

"If you think you're safe here, oh,I got news for you, brat." Jasper growled. "You're not!" She readied her helmet to hit the pod.

"JASPER!" Connie screeched.

"Stay off my home!" Jasper yelled, thrusting her helmet forward.

Jenny suddenly slid in front of her aim. "STOP!"

Jasper halted inches from the girl's face. Jenny gasped for air, clearly not only in fear for Connie's life, but her own as well. "C-Connie's in there."

Jasper looked at the pod, bending down to see Connie had curled herself up, and was shaking uncontrollably. "Kiddo..." Jasper whispered weakly. She picked up the pod and with one mighty crack, it split in half over her knee. Connie fell  
out, winded.

"Connie?!" Lapis and Peridot cried in surprise.

"What were you doing in there?!" Lapis gasped.

"Connie! You found Pearl's escape pod and didn't come get me immediately!? I mean, I wouldn've handled this so much better!"

"We almost hurt you…" Lapis whispered softly in shock, hands over her mouth.

"Connie, are you insane?!" Jasper boomed. Connie flinched. "You, young lady, are in huge trouble! Do you hear me?! I'm very disappointed in you!"

"Yes…I… I understand…" Connie sighed, tears in her eyes. "I'll knew the rules and I… I broke them, I'll never do it again."

"Hey, cut the girl some slack!" Jenny growled, the teens running to stand in front of their friend.

"It's not her fault!" Buck insisted.

"Just let her be a DJ!" Sour Cream cried, accidentally putting his own problem into Connie's.

"Sometimes I just can't understand this strange language…" Peridot whispered.

"We just wanted Connie to have some fun." Sour Cream said. "I don't know what's going on with aliens trying to abduct her, and her being her own mom. But it sounds like she's got a lot on her mind."

"I'm sure whatever you're having her do is important, but everyone needs a break once in a while." Jenny whispered.

"She's just a kid." Buck said softly.

Peridot, Lapis, and Jasper glanced at each other.

"Jasper's punishments maybe are a bit much." Peridot whispered. Jasper punched her in the arm. "I-I mean our…"

"She did save us from being shattered..." Lapis smiled softly

"Connie," Jasper grunted sternly. Connie looked up. The gem smirked, "You're ungrounded from TV."

Connie squealed in happiness, running to Jasper and hugging her. 


	55. Love Letters

It was a beautiful day, Steven and Connie taking selfies on his phone.

"You blinked!" Steven laughed, looking at the picture.

"Let's take another one." Connie grinned.

Steven turned and saw the ocean. "Oh wait. What if we get a shot with the ocean behind us? That'd be so cool!" He ran to the edge of the cliff and motion Connie to him, "Come on, Connie!"

Connie blushed and joined him. Steven held up the phone. "Say "cheese"!" He said. They grinned and said, "Cheeeeeese!" They kept smiling as Steven tried to press the capture button, but failed.

"Did it take it?" Connie said through her teeth.

"I don't know." Steven murmered back.

"Press it again."

"I've been pressing it."

"You guys look cute." They turned and saw the mailman, Jamie smiling up at them with black sunglasses on.

"Oh! Jamie! It's so great to see you again!" Connie cried, running to him.

"Jamie! You're back!" Steven gasped, running after Connie.

"Good morning, Connie, Steven. Long time, No see!" Jamie laughed. He offered Connie a high five and she accepted.

"Hi Jamie!" Steven said, also giving a high five. "Where have you been?"

"Oh, you know, just spendin' some time where all the big pictures are made…" Jamie sighed wistfully.

Connie and Steven looked at each other and Connie whispered, "Uh, where's that?"

"Just a little place called Kansas!" Jamie said waving his hand across the sky.

"You're a movie star?!" Steven gasped with stars in his eyes.

"I am, a actor, good sir." Jamie said, giving a bow to the boy.

"Wow, I didn't know you wanted to be an thespian." Connie grinned.

"That's because," Jamie turned and clutched his heart. "I'm very good at acting."

The children clapped for him. Connie cocked her head with a eyebrow arched saying, "Ah! So, that's why you're wearing those glasses that say "Movie Star"." She pointed to his glasses.

"Uh, well, no. I just bought these at a souvenir shop." Jamie blushed. "I missed being a regular old mailman, so I just came back." He dropped a big bag at his feet. "And you, miss Universe, got a lot of mail while I was  
gone."

"Looks like the postal service has been slacking off." Steven said.

"Jamie's the only mailman that knows where I live." Connie said with a smile.

"I'm gonna need a lot of signatures as well." Jamie said.

Connie tried to crack her knuckles but failed.

"Your knuckles are so quiet." Steven whispered.

"My hands are polite."

Steven squinted and frowned. "Connie… why's the ground shaking?"

Connie then noticed it too, it was a very slight rumble that turned to a tremor. A crack suddenly opened between the children and Jasper gave a yell as she leapt out. She shook rocks out of her hair. She glanced around, seeing she had knocked  
both Connie and Steven over. The crack was filled back in with sand.

"Oh, kiddo, you okay?" Jasper gasped, helping Connie up. She either didn't notice or ignored Steven behind her, to be honest, it was most likely latter.

She didn't notice Jamie had taken off his glasses, staring at this goddess-like gem.

When Jasper saw, she tilted her head. "You okay, bud?"

Connie leapt in front of him. "Did you find them?" She asked hopefully.

Jasper gave a sigh, "Nope. Didn't find the runt and Garnet anywhere… I searched to the core of the Earth."

Connie nodded sadly and hung her head. "Thanks for trying…"

"How did you get to the core of the Earth?" Jamie whispered in awe.

"Easy." Jasper smirked. "I was made in the core of the Earth." She said epicly.

Jamie stared.

Jasper suddenly shook off rocks like a dog, and Jamie thought it was amazing and beautiful.

Some time later, Connie and Steven were unwrapping Connie's many packages.

"Connie, why did you order so many boxes of Sea Pals?" Steven asked.

Connie grinned, "Well, Peridot was certain they were real sea animals, even though I kept telling her they weren't. So, I ordered just one to make her see that… they didn't show up, so I kept ordering more!"

"Cool! I love Sea Pals!" Steven gushed.

"Want some? I got plenty." Connie laughed. They were about to exchange when they heard a small cough. They turned to see Jamie looking very nervous clutching a rose pink letter.

"H-H-Hello, Connie…" He said, blushing hard.

Connie cocked her head and pointed to a letter. "What's that?"

Jamie flinched a little. "Uh... It's…" He looked at the letter, then shoved it into Connie's hands. "Here!"

"But, what is," She looked up and saw him running away, laughing like a manic. "it…"

Connie slowly turned it around and she and Steven gasped for it said, "For Jasper"

They were too shocked to see Jamie still running and flapping his scrawny arms like a chicken with it's head cut off.

They rushed to the beach house to tell Jasper. "Jasper! Jasper! Jasper! The most unbelievable thing has happened!" Connie cried, almost bumping into the gem.

"Whoa, kiddo!" Jasper laughed, stepping around her. "You can tell me later! Right now, I got to go." Jasper said, her helmet appearing. She attempted to walk away, when Connie struggled out, "But… You got a letter!"

Jasper stopped. She turned and saw Connie holding the pink letter. "Read it, now."

Connie opened it and read Jamie's letter: "To Jasper…."

Connie imagined Jamie writing this dressed in Shakspherin clothes, in a candlelit study, pouring his very heart into this letter. She imagined him writing, "When I saw you rise like an ancient goddess of earth, a white hot steel pierced the  
deepest artery of my being!" He maybe had used his hands to make dramatic gestures? "You, you are a cardiac surgeon and I am your transplant patient and you stand poised over my chest, holding my still beating heart. Hesitating, waiting,  
wondering. So I implore you to join me for dinner, or maybe lunch if you wanna keep it casual, next Friday at the Crab Shack! I await your response, as the camellia awaits the rise of the moon! 'Cause, you know, it only blooms at night and stuff.  
Love, Jamie…"

Steven had stars in his eyes and whispered, "I think Jamie is asking you out. On a date!" He blushed.

"Well, that's not happening." Connie answered.

"Absolutely not." Jasper grunted.

"But why?"

"Jasper doesn't like humans very much, besides, she doesn't like to date, she just likes to be single."

"Yeah, fusing with a human is impossible, and it would only make me weaker." Jasper explained.

Connie nodded in agreement.

"But why can't you just try?" Steven begged, "Jamie put so much thought into this letter! We gotta reply at least!"

"Uh, no, we don't." Jasper growled. Connie grabbed Jasper's arm. "He has a point…"

Jasper gave a groan walking over to the couch. She purposely sat between Connie and Steven. Steven picked up a pencil and paper, "Okay, so, Jamie'll probably like it if this kinda sounds like his letter. And start off with something like,  
Dearest Jamie,—"." Steven looked up, winking, "Go for it, dude!"

Jasper avoided eye contact and mumbled out, "No."

"Please, Jasper-" Connie tried.

"N. O. That's my letter, straight, simple, poetic, rolls off the tounge, oh, and-"

"That can't be it!" Steven cried.

Jasper gave the child one look of utter destruction in her eyes.

"O-Ok! Honest! That's.. I like it!" Steven laughed, sweat rolling down his cheek.

Connie looked at Jasper who gave a halfhearted shrug.

"Where do you think he could be?" Steven asked.

"Prehaps he's taking a lunch break, seems logical, it is noon." Connie shrugged. She then saw the man sitting on a log at the beach, staring at the sky. "He's right there!" She pointed.

"Jamie!" Connie cried, running to him with Steven not far behind.

"Oh hi, Steven and Connie." Jamie sighed wistfully as Connie and Steven sat down beside him, "You guys come here to stare at the ocean and think about life too?"

Steven gave a chuckle. "No! We came to uh-" He moved to give Jamie the letterbut the man interrupted with a monologue, "Yeah, life is crazy. One day you're right here in Beach City delivering mail and then the next thing you know,  
you're on a bus to Kansas, following your dreams of becoming an actor. "Follow your dreams," they said. But no one said anything about all the rejection and sadness there was to be found." The man clutched his fist, watching seagulls flying in  
the sky. "So many auditions day after day. So much rejection day after day. That's why I came back…" The seagulls suddenly slammed into each other and fell into the ocean. "One more rejection would have destroyed my fragile heart."  
He gave a sigh and wiped his tearfully eyes. "Sorry, some times I get caught up in the "drama zone", you know?"

Connie glanced at Steven whispering, "Yeah, right... "drama zone"."

Steven immediately crushed the letter in his fist.

A few minutes later, Connie smoothed out the paper and held a pencil. She erased what they had written before.

"How can we give this letter to Jamie now? He might get upset." Steven sighed.

"We can make adjustments." Connie said firmly.  
"We can match Jamie's poetic language and let him down easy! I watched some episodes of a torrid soap opera once, so I'm confident that I get the gist of romance." She started to write, "Dear Jamie. You, dear camellia, expectantly await the  
light of my moon, yet my light is more of a scorching.. wilting… dry desert heat. And as for your metaphorical surgeon, it is with a heavy heart that I urge you to seek a second opinion. I return your heart to you-"

""Also, your hair is nice." Steven added.

"Hair... is... nice. Yours, but not really, Jasper."  
Connie said softly, ending the letter.

"Perfect." Steven murmered.

They soon walked out to Connie's mailbox and put the letter to Jamie in. "We did it." Connie beamed.

* * *

Connie was reading a mystery book at the light of a flashlight as it poured rain outside. She nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard, "Jasper!"

"Jasper! Where art thou, my sweet scorching sunbeam?" Connie ran out to the porch and saw Jamie, soaking wet in the rain, "Jasper! I read thy letter and I understand. Thou hast returneth mine heart!"

"No! No, that's not what—" Connie tried but he didn't see her, too caught in his own feelings.

"Jasper. You like my hair just as I adore yours. Come to me, Jasper." Jamie sighed in longing.

"Jamie!" Connie yelled sharply, snapping him out of it.

"Ah, young mistress Connie," Jamie said, looking up at the girl, "pray thee, where is Lady Jasper?"

"She... she's, no— She's not coming." Connie sighed in defeat.

"But I've come to proclaim my love for my woman!" Jamie yelled, making a dramatic and almost scary face.

"No, Jamie," Connie sighed. "you don't understand, I—" She gave a gasp when Jasper suddenly walked out. She glared down at Jamie, "What do you want wi, mailman?"

"Jasper! Hah, you've come." Jamie whispered.

"You can tell Connie about all the beautiful things you wrote to me in your missive!" Jamie said, producing the letter.

Jasper glanced at it, "Stop lying, twerp, I didn't make that!"

"But it's all right here, stained with tears of joy, and now also rain." Jamie ensisted.

Connie felt guilty and finally let it out. "Steven and I wrote that letter, Jamie!"

"What?" Jamie gasped, looking almost heartbroken.

"I'm sorry, Jamie. We just wanted to let you down easy." Connie explained.

Jamie said in a low and sad tone to Jasper, "Willst thou not scorch me, my darling sun?"

"How dare you call me darling!" Jasper growled. She then gave a sigh and said, "Leave me alone! I'm not interested and will never, ever be interested in you! GO AWAY, NOW!"

Jamie gasped in shock, clenching a fist and holding the other to Jasper. "M-My panache!" He then ran away, crying.

"Jamie! Wait! Please!" Connie cried while Jasper crossed her arms.

Connie and Steven sat on a grassy area bellow the beach house, feeling guilty and sad.

"I feel so bad for poor Jamie." Connie sighed.

"Yeah, but I'm sure he'll bounce back from this in no time. He's probably gonna show up with the mail any moment now!" Steven said with hopeful optimism.

Connie gave a small smile and Steven grinned back.

"'Scuse me, kids!" They suddenly heard. They turned to see a short and stout woman who looked much like Sadie with a letter in her hand. "I'm looking for the home of... Connie Universe?"

"Oh! I'm Connie, madam, nice to meet you." The girl said, walking to where the woman was.

"Hey!" The woman laughed, recognizing her. "You're Doug girl! I thought Jamie was pulling my leg when he told me you were living over here."

Connie looked around her, searching for the man and asked, "Where is Jamie?"

"Oh, that poor kid's emotions have been destroyed!" The woman cried.

"W-what?!" Connie gasped.

"Yeah, he's a mess! Said he couldn't bear to deliver mail on this route again after having his love spurned."

Steven walked up behind Connie with his head tilted in curiosity.

"He said it just like this." The woman striked a pose just as Jamie often did. "Like, like when he's in the "drama zone". Then he clenched his fist and closed his eyes like this—" She did so for demonstration. "full of  
drama 'til the end…"

The children merely stared in suprise.

" Anyway, here's a book of coupons." Connie numbly took it and the woman walked away, with a "Have a good one!"

Connie exchanged a concerned look with Steven. Suddenly, Jasper slammed in front of them, fighting some kinda rock monster. She kicked the rocks apart and grabbed the gem from it. Connie and Steven watched in amazement and Jasper turned. She frowned,  
"What's up with you? Look like someone got shattered."

"Because of us, Jamie is feeling lower than ever." Connie sighed.

"We shattered the man!" Steven cried.

"He'll never love again!" Connie whispered, tears in her eyes.

"Ugh, I'll fix this." Jasper muttered. She started walking towards the town. Connie and Steven went after her, running while Jasper walked and was still ahead of them.

"But your words will destroy him!" Connie cried.

"Can't you just, like, zap his brain so he forgets any of this ever happened?" Steven begged.  
Jamie sat on his log again, letting many letters blow into the wind and into the ocean. A shadow covered him, "Jamie, right?" He turned to see Jasper.

"Jasper!" Jamie gasped in surprise. Jasper sat down next to him. "Listen, I didn't mean to make you upset, I mean, I kinda did, but I feel bad now. So… sorry."

"Oh! So, will you go out with me?" Jamie asked happily, spirits lifted.

"Are you even- No!" Jasper snapped.

Jamie looked at her with a dreamy exsprsion, and whispered, "But I've loved you since the moment I saw you."

"Love at first sight doesn't exist." Jasper growled then softened. "Love takes time, and love takes work. I haven't experienced this kind of romantic love, and if I have," Jasper smirked, "I wouldn't know. But I've seen  
it happen, I've seen love create something strong and powerful, cause love's like that, ya know? ….You literally have no idea of who, or what, I am, so you should not want to date me."

"But I bloom for you like... like a... camellia... under moonlight." Jamie whispered.

"Probably not, bud." Jasper shrugged. Jamie looked upset and Connie glanced at Steven with surprise.

"You know, you make a pretty good lovesick fool. You convinced these kids," Jasper motioned to Steven and Connie. "You even convinced yourself. You're not half bad for a actor, Jamie."

"What am I supposed to do now?" Jamie said with maturity.

"Start with local theater, I guess." Jasper shrugged. She slapped Jamie on the back and walked away.

Connie and Steven walked up and Connie cocked her head, "Are you okay?"

Jamie gave a weak smile. "Yeah. That was some pretty solid advice."

"Were those more letters you wrote to Jasper?" Steven asked.

"No. That was the mail I was supposed to deliver on my last route." Jamie said. Jamie stared at the ocean while Connie and Steven stared at him.

"We'll help you pick it all up." Connie smiled.

"Thanks." 


	56. Reformed

Connie was taking a quiz online that she had phone lit up, saying Lisa with the young hero beneath it. "Lisa!" Connie gasped, "Wow… that's amazing… I'm Lisa..." She turned to Peridot and Doug who were

fixing his car, again. Well, Peridot was fixing the car while Doug tried to help. Whenever he did, Peridot usually hissed at him, scaring him away again.

"Hey! Guys!" Connie called.

Doug smiled gratefully, "Yes?"

"You guys should take this online quiz I found. It tells you what…" Peridot suddenly grabbed a wrench beside her. "It tells you what character you are from "The Spirit Morth Saga"!" Connie cried.

"Why would you want to know what edible you are?" Peridot asked.

"It's just fun to see yourself as a book character," Connie explained. "like Archmicris, the falcon, who is a little strict at times but overall is just a big softy;" She looked at Peri and then her father. "or Plinkman,

Lisa's father who wishes he just could do things perfectly."

"Uh, maybe we can do that thing after Peridot fixes the car." Doug said, "I gotta stay here, just in case."

"Okay," Connie sighed. She then lit up, running away, "I'll go find someone else!"

After she had gone, Doug attempted to sneak the wrench away so Peridot would be forced to have him help, but Peridot snapped her head and yelled, "Get away from my stuff, Doug!"

Connie entered the house and saw Lapis making a sandwich with almost all of the fridge. She saw Connie and smiled, "Do we have any more motor oil? Jasper's on a big mission so I decided to make her lunch!"

Connie tilted her head. "Um, motor oil's for cars, Lapis."

Lapis blinked. "Yeah… so, do we have any or not…"

"Well, Dad probably has some outside." Connie said. She then remembered the quiz and gasped, "Oh! But uh... you've gotta take this online quiz! "Which Spirit Morth Character Are You?"

"Oh! Um, okay! What's the first question?" Lapis asked excitedly, flying over the counter after dropping the ingredients.

"Are you a introvert or extrovert?" Connie asked.

"... extrovert." Lapis answered, squeezing a mustard bottle until it exploded, then hugged herself with a blush. "Duh."

"Are you afraid of taking risks and trying new things?"

Lapis finished the sandwich, blushing, "Er, no, that's a silly question."

"Lapis, are you taking this seriously?" Connie huffed.

"Hm?" Lapis turned to see Connie, for she had almost been too wrapped up in sandwich making to listen. "Oh, er, of course."

"Okay." Connie grinned. She tapped yes to the question, "Are you taking this seriously?" Connie continued, "Has your past changed who you care about most at any time?" Lapis' eyes widened and stopped cold in putting

lettuce on, "No… yes? No!" She cried

"So that's a no?" Connie whispered.

"I got to go." Lapis muttered, flying to the temple gate.

"But, you haven't finished the quiz yet!" Connie protested, running after her. The temple opened Lapis' room and Jasper was looking back.

"Jasper!" Lapis cried,clearly upset. "What are you doing in my room?" She ran in and after Connie had grabbed her sword from her room, she followed close behind.

"I saw a corrupted gem, and um, I followed it, 'cause it leapt off Peri's room." Jasper explained later.

Lapis gave a sigh, "Okay, but I'm still upset.."

"Where did it come from?" Connie asked, looking around.

"Don't know, don't really care. It kinda looks like that creature Peridot was screaming her head off about describing…." Jasper said, letting Lapis freeze the water so they could search.

"You saw The Mysterious Monster of Doom!?" Connie gasped.

"But, I thought we agreed it was just Peri screaming for attention again, also, why are we calling it that?" Lapis asked softly, glancing at Connie.

"It sounds really cool!" Connie said in her defense.

"Usually it is just Peri being loud, and I believed that in the blink of an eye, but now, it's actually a real thing, plus, it's a really cool name." Jasper winked at the girl who punched her fist in the air in triumph. "Horray!"

"But, why can't I look for it?" Lapis groaned, walking behind Jasper as they looked for the creature.

"And let you take my top rank of captured gems? I don't think so." Jasper chuckled. They walked up to a hole that was dug down past Lapis' stone pavilion that was in the center. Lapis frowned and peered down it.

"How long's this thing been in here?" Connie whispered in awe. Lapis bent down and pulled out something from the edge of the hole. She cover Connie's sight and showed Jasper the skull. Once Connie tried to pry her hands away, Lapis threw

it away, letting it sink underwater…

"What was that?" Connie asked innocently.

"Oh, not-" Jasper covered Lapis' mouth.

"Quiet!" Jasper hissed.

The trio set off again, quiet, listening for the corrupted gems.

Jasper threw a rock out of their way, and Connie smiled, "Jasper's so brave and a guardian to everyone, like Rowland, Pinkman's familiar."

"Connie, now is not the time to talk about your book." Lapis whispered.

"Oh right, the quiz!" Connie gasped. She pulled out her phone and walked towards Lapis. "Do you get defensive when people ask you questions about the feelings you prefer to keep hidden?"

Lapis froze and turned. "I… Urgh, come on, let's just find this monster."

Connie couldn't help but feel hurt.

They suddenly heard a hiss and Jasper gasped. She snapped her head to it. "There!" She yelled. She took off her helmet, swung it around a few times, and let it go at a aimed spot at the water. The splash echoed as the trio ran to it.

"Did you get it?" Lapis whispered.

"What do you think." Jasper grunted. Lapis blushed, watching her leave. Her eyes suddenly narrowed. She gasped suddenly and pushed Jasper to the ground with a, "Look out!" A black tentacle emerged from the ice, grabbed Lapis

by her wrist, and pulled her under the water.

"Lapis!" Connie cried. Jasper was quick to dive in after her, leaving Connie to worry for a few moments. She emerged, but with no Lapis, only her gem clutched gently in Jasper's hand. Connie slowly took the gem. "Jasper…" She

whispered with tears in her eyes.

"Ah, don't cry, kid. Our bodies don't exist, remember? Lapis will be okay." Jasper said reassuringly, ruffling her hair

"B-but Peri took two whole weeks to come back, and I already miss Lapis so much!" Connie cried.

Jasper bent down and held her by the shoulders. "She'll be back before you know it, promise you."

Lapis' gem started to glow and then floated in the air.

"Literally." Jasper muttered.

Lapis soon appeared and flew to Connie. She then realized her legs were gone and could only use her wings to move. "W-what?"

"It's a side effect. You rushed regeneration." Jasper mumbled.

Lapis glared at her, "This is the first time I've ever poofed in front of Connie, I needed her to see I'm okay, and that you two are okay as well." Lapis hugged Connie. She smiled, "Let's go, and catch this Mysterious Monster."

Lapis soon stopped them and whispered, "Here, it's here." The ice beneath them melted and they plunged under water. Lapis made the water shove to the sides, letting them land on the cold, wet, stone floor.

"You look… so different" Connie whispered a few minutes later.

"I know." Lapis replied.

"And… you came back really quick…"

"I know." Lapis snapped sharply.

"So... why did you come back without any legs?" Connie asked.

"It doesn't matter!" Lapis growled, making Connie flinch.

"Huh…" Connie murmured.

"Lapis rushed her regeneration, she should've taken her time." Jasper whispered.

"Like Peridot?" Lapis froze at Connie's question.

"Well, yeah. Lapis needs to take time regeneraing no mater what state her peers are in, Peridot at least knew that."

"Oh, so sorry I care about you!" Lapis snapped, turning to them. "I'm sorry I'm not like Peridot, with her brains, and her dry room with no monsters in it!"

Suddenly, the monster crashed out from the stone and made another, Lapis poofing into her gem.

"She got 'poofed' again!" Connie cried.

"Whelp, this is a good opportunity for her, now she can make a better form." Jasper muttered. Lapis' gem glowed again and raised up.

She then formed, but she looked just like Peri, accept her hair was small compared to Peri's shape of hair.

"Better?" Lapis asked, smirking at Jasper in defiance.

Connie giggled.

Later, Jasper walked in front of Connie and Lapis.

"Oh Jasper, what do you think of my new look? I'm much more like Peridot now! Isn't that just splendid?" Lapis laughed. Connie had a odd feeling in her mind, that reminded her of when Lapis had shapeshifted to her mother's form to get

at her dad, was this the same thing?

"I, the great Peridot am the leader of this mission!" Lapis said.

"Okay, it's kinda funny, but we need to focus on listening for the creature!" Jasper sighed.

"I can't focus, all these rocks are different sizes, we'll have to organize them by shape and color. Didn't anyone tell nature how I want it to look? It should obey me." Lapis huffed.

Connie giggled and Jasper rolled her eyes. "Okay, you done yet? We have a mission, you know."

"Never, I constantly talk, you clod! I need everyone's constant approval, I need to loquaciously converse so I can show off… how very smart I am!" Lapis cut of sharply at the last sentence, annoyed.

"Well… you can converse with me. Let's finish that quiz! Do you need to plan ahead before you act?" Connie asked.

"No! I always just do whatever I want, on instinct!"

"Do you obsess over little details?"

"Heh, of course!"

"Wow, you're so method." Connie murmered. "Next time, can you come back as me?"

"Prehaps-"

"Oh, shut up!" Jasper yelled, snapping to them. "Can't you just be yourself? You win, okay? So stop it!"

Lapis gave a tiny smirk after her sudden fear. "And if I don't? What then?"

Jasper leapt to her as quick as lighting, grabbing her wrist. "Then, I'll make you."

"Let me go!" Lapis snarled.

Connie gasped in suprise. "Guys, stop it! The creature-"

"I thought you wanted me to be more like Peridot, I am! So…" Lapis struggled in her grip. "Put me down!"

"That's because Peri would've taken a regeneration seriously!"

"Ugh, why won't you release me?!" Lapis yelled.

"Because you're WEAK, and you never see it!" Jasper bellowed. Connie gasped and Lapis stopped struggling in shock. Suddenly, a black tentacle of the monster grabbed Lapis around the waist, pulling her away from Jasper.

"Ugh! Why do you insist on winning?!" Lapis growled, struggling against the monster trying to pull her into the water wall she had created herself.

"Because you do!" Jasper yelled.

The tentacle squeezed Lapis tighter and she poofed.

"How could you guys say that to each other?!" Connie cried, picking up Lapis' gem. She heard the monster and took out her sword insitivly.

Lapis' gem glowed, raising. Connie relized her hands were glowing. Whenever her hands glowed like that, Connie knew that she herself was not controlling it, that someone else knew when the need to destabilize gems was, when they were in very grave  
/danger, from each other.

Lapis suddenly formed, but the size of Jasper.

"How's this for weak?!" She laughed darkly at Jasper. Connie felt her hand that was more toward Lapis glow brighter.

"W-Why… why are you acting like this?" Connie cried, trying to close her hands not to show the powers.

"Because of her! I'm not weak!" Lapis yelled, stepping to Jasper. "Ha! Try to force me to fuse now!"

"Lapis! Stop it, now! That was in the past-"

"I know!" Lapis snarled.

Connie gasped.

They heard hissing and Lapis gave a growl, "Just let me protect her!" She leapt into the water wall and Jasper turned to Connie, "Stay here!"

Connie's glow had faded as quickly as it had come. After a few seconds later, Jasper slammed out of the water wall, soon followed by the Mysterious Monster with Lapis holding onto a tentacle.

"Let it go!" Jasper yelled.

"No! Despite how much you annoy me right now, I have to protect you!" Lapis cried.

"Lapis, if we can fight it togther-!" Jasper insisted.

"N-NO!" Lapis screamed, her arms and body shaking, clearly not meant to be in this form.

"She doesn't want to protect herself!" Connie gasped.

Jasper turned to her and Lapis gave a short breath in shock, "What?" Suddenly, the monster poofed her. Connie gave a war cry, both her and Jasper pouncing on it. Connie stabbed it with her sword and Jasper punched it. Connie flipped backward,

landing on her feet and put her sword away just in time to leap up and catch Lapis' gem.

"I knew that thing was real! Heh, heh! And you thought I was just screaming! When Lapis gets back we have to go find it!" Peridot ran to Connie who still held Lapis' gem. "Is she back yet?"

Connie numbly shook her head.

"How long had it been?"

"3 weeks…" Connie whispered.

"Well… Lapis has always needed her space." Peridot whispered.

"I was too hard on her." Jasper sighed.

Lapis' gem suddenly started to glow.

"She's coming back!" Connie gasped.

Lapis reformed back to her normal self, but her clothes had changed. She wore a dress that had a dark blue bodice and a white skirt that was partly overlayed with the same blue material of the bodice. A black ribbon was tied round her waist and

both of her ankles, and both her arms, had bands that had pale blue crystal raindrops on them. She landed on the table. She saw everyone staring and Lapis blushed, "D-Do you like it?"

"It's perfect." Jasper whispered.

"Thank you." Lapis giggled. "It's what felt right."

"That's why it's perfect."

Lapis gave a tiny sigh, "I'm so sorry, about before."

"Eh, don't sweat it." Jasper smirked.

"Good job, Lapis! You finally fixed all that black I hated so much!" Connie and Peridot hugged her. Jaspe joined in.

"Guys, this is sweet, but-" Lapis tried.

"Nope, it's hug time." Connie whispered.

Lapis blushed. "Well, if you insist.." She hugged them back, happy to have them all in her life.

* * *

 **Sorry this is so late, I have a lot on my plate at the moment! I hope you guys like the new design for Lapis, it actually is the usual momswap attire that is seen in Lapis, the ankle and arm bracelets my idea. I can't wait for this next episode!**


	57. Sworn to a Shield

Connie and Steven sat on a hand of the temple, Connie tuned her violin while Steven tuned his ukulele. Connie started to play a jaunty tempo while Steven strummed a song.

" _The sun is bright, our shirts are clean, we're sitting up above the sea. Come on and share this jam with me._ " Steven sang happily.

" _Peach or plum or strawberry, any kind is fine, you see. Come on and share this jam with me!_ " Connie sang, her mother's gem shining in the summer sun. " _I'll do my best, to give this jam the sweetness it deserves._ "  
She sang, standing and letting the wind blow through her hair.

" _And I'll keep it fresh, I'm jamming on these tasty preserves!_ " Steven sang, doing a cute little jig. The two walked to each other, playing thier instruments and they smiled. " _Ingredients in harmony, we mix together perfectly. Come on and share this jam with me!_ "  
They sang together. Connie strummed her bow across the instrument to finish.

They grinned.

"Nice jam session!" Connie laughed, putting the instrument in its case.

"Jam buds!" Steven cried.

Connie laughed and spread strawberry jam on her biscuit. "Don't forget the best part!" She was about to give it to Steven when seagulls suddenly saw the tasty snack and tried to attack her. Steven saw and grabbed his ukulele, defending  
Connie, but not hurting the birds. "Ahhh! Shoo! Get away from her! Shoo! Shoo! Don't come back!"

Connie stared in wonder while Steven took his snack.

"Thanks for holding my jam snack." He said as Connie still stared. "Unfortunately, it's not safe from me." He chomped down on it and smiled.

"That was incredible, Steven! You're amazing with a shield, better than me." Connie said, blushing.

"Huh?" Steven whispered. He swallowed and blushed. "Nah, I was just swinging this thing around. I don't really know what I'm doing, but I'd love to learn how to use a real shield! To protect people, like you!"

Connie gave a gasp and diamonds appeared in her eyes. "I have a idea."

* * *

"No."

"Please? Steven's already really good!" Connie pleaded with Peridot who tried to walk away.

"Ah shucks." Steven blushed. "Not really.."

Connie ran after Peridot and grabbed her wrist. "He's being modest! He helped me fight this robot from mother's armory, he took down that evil clone of himself, uh... those seagulls just now, that was pretty great."

"Ugh, he's a human, Connie, and a child as well. A shield is a big responsibility! He must protect you, as well as your gem." Peridot said, looking at her gem. "Humans can only lead to no good when meddling with gem things."

"Then why am I allowed to meddle with gem stuff?" Connie asked innocently.

"I…" Peridot glanced at Steven, and couldn't help rembering how a human just like him had taken her away once, never again. "No."

"That's… that's okay." Steven sighed, giving a weak smile. "I guess I just wanted to, because  
don't know all this crazy gem stuff you're all doing, but if something dangerous comes along, and tries to hurt or take away Connie, I don't wanna just stand there like… I always have," Steven sighed, remembering when he couldn't protect Connie from  
those drill parasites. "I wanna help! I wanna be there for Connie, to fight by her side! The Earth is my home too, can't I help protect it?" Steven whispered, blushing.

Peridot heard that he wanted to help Connie, to protect her. The gem turned with small tears in her eyes and said, "Well….I suppose… if you promise me you can and will be useful."

Steven nodded.

"Fine."

Steven and Connie beamed.

"Well, come along." Peridot said, smiling and walking to the warp pad. "we should get started, for I am as skilled with a shield as a sword, I had to learn both."

"Yay!" Connie cried, running after her.

"Oh, oh, are we going now?" Steven asked in excitement.

* * *

Connie, Peridot, and Steven warped over. Peridot holding a dirty metal training shield. Steven hovered above the warp for a moment, giggling in joy. He landed face down, still laughing.

"You okay?" Connie gasped, helping him up. Steven suddenly started running around, laughing, "Magic gem place!" He yelled in happiness. He then tripped and fell once again.

"Maybe this was a bad idea." Peridot muttered. Steven gasped in suprise and shook his head, "No! No, I promise I'll be better!" He raced up the stairs after her with Connie close behind.

They entered the sky area and Steven gasped in surprise, "Beautiful…"

"Hm, I suppose." Peridot said, walking in front of her new pupil. "This is an Ancient Sky Arena, Steven, where some of the first battles for Earth took place. It was here that I became familiar with the concept of being a knight,  
completely dedicated to a person and a cause." She presented Steven the shield. "This is what you must become, even though you are but a human; brave, selfless, loyal... a knight! We begin with a bow, first to me, your exslenct and all-knowing  
mentor of the art." Peridot bowed to the by and he gave a slight bow back. "And now again, to your liege." Steven tilted his head in confusion. "Connie, Steven, your liege is Connie."

"Oh! Of course!" Steven blushed. He turned to Connie and knelt before her, "My liege." He said a goofy voice.

"Sir knight." Connie said, bowing back to her new protector. They giggled together until Peridot practically shoved them apart. "Steven Demayo, you must take this seriously if you ever want this hybrid to live!" She growled,  
pointing to Connie and making him gasp. No one had ever been this harsh with him before and it hurt.

"S-sorry…" He whispered. Connie helped him up and gave Peridot a small glance.

"Now, since Lapis won't experiment with her water anymore, something about being traumatized and never doing it again,I shall use this." Her gem glowed and a holographic version of her appeared. "It has my same skill set in advanced  
mode."

"Level 0, beginner, set. Do you wish to engage in combat?" The hologram asked.

Steven did a goofy giggle. Connie took out her sword with she had on her back in her mother's scabbard. "Peridot, he won't be hurt by it, will he?"

"Nah, it has beginner set!" Steven replied.

Connie blushed and slowly walked away. "Right, right." She ran to and then stood nervously beside a column.

Peridot walked up to Steven, placing a hand on his shield arm, guiding his movements, and the other on his shoulder. She made him raise his shield to block a attack. "Alright then, everything begins with your stance." Peridot whispered.  
She then started to sing, " _You'd do it for her. And you would do it again. You'd do it for her, no matter what you are or what we, were._ " Peridot blushed, realizing she what she had sang. Connie watched happily nearby.

" _Keep your stance low, keep your guard is higher. And if your enemies are much more slyer, just know your pride is the key._ " Over the course of a day, Steven had returned to train once more. Connie had prepared a smoothie for him  
and they hurried to the warp pad.

" _Keep strong,_ " Peridot put her foot down, giving slashes at Steven who blocked her. " _No fear,_ " Steven put his own sandaled foot behind him as Connie watched. " _now go even faster._ " Steven blocked  
her swift attacks faster and faster. He moved backward. " _And as you're moving backwards, keep your eyes on me."_ Steven kept his eyes on the ground until she said that.

" _Keep my stance low._ " Steven whispered.

"Hm, you're improving." Peridot said.

" _Keep my guard higher._ " Steven sang, dodging and shielding himself against a robot's attacks

"Yes…" Peridot whispered.

" _And if my enemies much more slyer…_ " Steven almost tripped, letting the robot almost hurt him.

"Oh, come on! Don't you want her to live?!" Peridot yelled behind him. Connie bit her lip, glancing between Steven and Peridot

" _Keep strong, no fear…"_ Steven said, narrowing his eyes. He somersaulted away, leaping over the robot which was in advanced mode. He glanced at Connie and gasped as the robot nearly sliced him from not being focus.

" _Yes, but don't you dare look back at her! Everything you have, everything you are, you've got to give—_ " Peridot sang.

Later, Steven and Connie sat on the stands watching Peridot project the past. " _On the battlefield, when everything is chaos,_ " A young Peridot saw a army of gems before her diamond, who must've shrunken down for a fair fight. " _and you have nothing but the way you feel, your strategy and a shield, you just think about the life you'll have together after the war._ "  
Young Peridot gave a cry and slid in front of her, shielding the diamond. The projection vanished. " _And then you do it for your leader, that's how victories occur. You'd do it for my di- that is to say you'll do it for her._ " Peridot  
nodded to Connie. The girl touched her gem which felt very warm at the moment and tears came to her eyes, but she didn't know why. Steven watched in awe.

" _Deep down you know you weren't built for fighting_ ," Peridot sang. Connie was surprised to see Peridot show her sweet and caring side, wrapping a bandage around Steven's arm and putting a bandage on his sword cut cheek. " _but that doesn't mean you're not prepared to try. What they don't know is your real advantage._ "  
Connie walked up with orange juice for him when he had changed into blue shorts and a red tanktop with a star, much like his normal outfit. He smiled happily. He picked it up and almost took a sip when Peridot walked up with a glare at the boy. " _When you live for someone, you're prepared to die._ "  
Connie stared in shock and was even more when Steven's eyes hardened with ice-cold, stern determination.

Steven held up his shield singing with sharpness he had never shown before, to the point Connie could barely see the innocent boy in his eyes. " _Deep down, I know that I'm just a human—_ "

"True." Peridot murmured beside him.

The two started singing together, with different parts.

" _But you know that you can draw your shield and fight._ " Peridot sang.

" _But I know that I can draw my shield and fight._ " Steven sang with her.

"Good."

" _I can make a difference-"_

"Yes!"

" _I can be there for her, I can be her knight. I can do it for her._ "

" _You'd do it for her..._ " Peridot sang. "Now do that, but be braver."

"Yes, sir." Steven whispered.

" _Without a stutter or slur, now you say-_ "

" _I'll do it for her_." Steven finished gently, both he and Peridot bowing to Connie. She looked between them with nervousness.

* * *

Connie rehearsed in her head what she was going to say, when suddenly Steven opened the door and walked in.

"Oh, Steven, um, er, uh-" Connie forgot everything she meant to say, too nervous.

"Hi Connie." Steven said dully, walking straight past her. He got on the warp pad and Connie forced out, "Stop!"

Steven turned when Peridot came out behind him, "Ah, right on time. I'm glad I fixed that annoying tick you had." She smirked.

"Wait! I need to talk to you, Steven…" Connie whispered.

The boy turned around, his steel demeanor melting when he truly looked at her worried face. "Oh, what is it? Do you need something?" He said with concern. Connie blushed, Steven was back, if only for a moment.

"This is no time to talk, Steven." Peridot said.

"Right." Steven said, and there he went.

"For a silly human, he's been making great strides, Connie. He's going to be very useful to you." Peridot said, looking down at Steven with pride.

Steven gave a brief nod, with a determined exsprsion. They warped away.

Connie hung her head in sadness and sighed.

Suddenly, Lapis' room opened up to her. Lapis and Jasper walked out, Lapis clearly forcing laughter, "Oh, oh… that was the funniest thing I've ever heard! That was a great pun."

"I'm pretty great at puns." Jasper said cockily, not realizing Lapis was sparing her feelings.

They stopped when they saw Connie looking troubled.

"Connie, are you okay? You look upset…" Lapis whispered.

"W-Well," Connie stuttered. "Steven is taking shield lessons from Peri, but I think it's getting a little too serious... She wants Steven to do all this dangerous stuff for me, to the point I can't recognize him anymore."

Lapis and Jasper gave a worried glance.

"That sounds about right." Jasper whispered, sitting down near Connie. Lapis gave a somber nod.

"What do you mean?" Connie asked. Lapis' gem glowed and water came out. With it, she showed the past. "Back during the war, Peridot took pride in hurting herself for your mother. She put her Diamond over everything, like she was  
made to;"

The water showed Yellow Diamond, against a huge army of gems. She was guarding Peridot and Jasper behind her. When the army suddenly started to run, Peridot ran between her Diamond's legs, letting them poof her. "over logic,"

The water flashed again, showing Peridot running in front of Yellow Diamond once more, she had shapeshifted smaller, Connie thinking she must've wanted a fair fight. The fair fight was for a gem Connie didn't recognize. The gem smirked at Peridot  
and stabbed her through with a pink sword. "over consequence,"

In the next flash, Connie was surprised to see Malicite. Peridot ran in front of her. The gem laughed, smashing her with a single flick of her hand. Yellow Diamond suddenly destabilized them and Lapis let the water splash to the ground, the memory  
going into clear water. Lapis put it in her gem and whispered, "even over her own life."

Connie then imagined herself in Yellow Diamond's place, holding her sword. If Steven was training under Peridot… in her imagination, Steven slid in front of her, if the enemy was able to knock the shield out of his hand… Connie gasped in  
shock. "No!"

"Are you okay?" Lapis looked concerned.

Connie said nothing, quickly took out her sword, and pushed past them to warp away.

* * *

Connie ran over and saw Peridot standing in front of Steven. "Remember, Steven. In the heat of battle, Connie is what matters. You don't matter." She said harshly.

"I don't matter." Steven repeated, clearly believing her.

Connie gasped and ran to them.

"Very good. Now, let us begin!" Peridot yelled, her gem glowing and masses of clouds concealed the area…

Connie ran in, holding her sword. She hearf Steven yelling and metal against metal, but where was it coming from? She started to run, yelling for him, "Steven! Steven, where are you? Steven!"

She turned to see a holo-Peridot. She held her sword firm, raising it for a fight, "Where's my friend?" She growled threatingly.

"Unregistered combatant detected!" The thing said dully, not answering her. It raised it's sword, and struck. Connie heard the resounding clang and gasped, opening her eyes to see Steven had protected her, his shield holding firm. He  
still blocked the hologram, unable to destroy it with just a shield. He turned to the girl he was supposed to protect, "Connie? What are you doing out here? It's not safe here!"

Connie seemed to rebel against his protection, rolling out from behind him, "Steven, listen to me, I don't want you to do this anymore! Not alone!"

Steven grinned surprisingly, "But Connie, I get it! I finally get it! Your legacy, your destiny, you are everything!" His smile faded and he dully said, "And I... I am nothing…" Connie stared and his happiness appeared once  
more. "but I can help you now! I'll never be a bother to you again!"

Connie started in surprise, "A… bother? ... No! I don't want you to get yourself hurt!' She didn't notice the hologram from before was approaching her from behind, sword raised. Steven's eyes widened and said, "Connie… I'm doing this  
for you!" He leapt in front of Connie once more, blocking it. The thing knew his strength now though, and pressed harder. Steven gave a grunt in his energy leaving and he panted out, "I need to be able to protect you!"

"But if you're the one protecting me…" Connie whispered. "then who's the one protecting you?!" She leapt up, sliding around the hologram and stabbed it through. It vanished. "Someday soon, we may be fighting some  
huge gems, stronger than me and the Temps alone, I've already seen them… and when they come, I want to fight with you, togther! So please…" Connie offered her hand to Steven as four holograms approached them from every direction. "... won't  
you share this jam with me?"

Steven hesitated but then smiled, and grabbed her hand. She helped him up and sensed the holograms coming. They all ran at them but she took out her blade, thrusting into one, shattering it.

"This is much easier, and much more fun!" Steven laughed.

"That's the idea!" Connie said warmly. She spun her sword in a spin attack swiftly and destroyed them all. She turned to Steven with a beam and happy flush, "No matter what comes, we do this together!" Steven air punched with  
a, "Yeah!"

"CONNIE DIAMOND UNIVERSE, WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" They suddenly heard Peridot screech. Connie dropped her sword in surprise. The clouds dissipated, revealing a very angry Peridot.

"Connie, don't interfere. The human needs to take me on himself, for I am his skilled master, if he beats me, he can protect you." Peridot growled.

"No, Peri!" Connie yelled. "We're a team! He's the biscuit," She pointed at Steven.

"And she's the strawberry!" Steven cried.

"And that makes us... JAM!"

"BUDS!" Steven finished.

"How…What…" Peridot sputtered. "GHAA! STOP DEFYING ME!"

Connie and Steven charged at her, trying to prove they were ready. Steven thrust out his shield, blocking Peridot's spear attacks. She used her powers to bring the pole up into the air and shot it at the boy. He slammed his shield up, blocking  
it. Peridot then smirked in cleverness and Steven's shield flew out of his hand, right to her. She threw the thing off to the side

Peridot grabbed her pole and leapt up. She charged to him but Connie suddenly sprang out and parried her. Peridot growled in anger. They had a small bout and Connie grabbed Steven's shield, flinging it like frisbee to him. He ran to help her. Connie  
leapt around Peridot, charging. Both she and Steven gave war cries, about to attack when she flung her hands out. "STOP IT!" She knocked the sword and shield out of their hands and they fell back.

Peridot huffed for air, whispering, "You… little… pebbles…" She then walked up to Steven with sterness. "In a real battle, Connie won't be there to save you! You will sacrifice yourself for her!"

Connie gave a growl, "No, I refuse to let him, not alone!"

"He must!"

"No, he mustn't! If he's going to fight, we're going to fight together! Protecting each other!" Connie cried sternly.

"Yeah! Jam buds forever!" Steven added.

"You shouldn't be anywhere near the fight, Connie! You're too important!" Peridot insisted, pointing her pole at the girl.

"I am not!" Connie yelled.

"Yes, you are!"

"NO!"

"WHY WON'T YOU JUST LET ME DO THIS FOR YOU, MY DIAMOND!?" Peridot suddenly shrieked. Connie gasped in suprise and Steven glanced between the two gems. Peridot blushed and whispered, "I… er… I mean... let him... do this." Steven  
cocked his head in confusion. "Why won't you let Steven do this... for you…" Peridot dropped her pole and said, "This lesson's over, children." She walked away and sat at the edge of the arena, alone. Connie and Steven glanced  
it each other with worry. They walked over to her and slowly sat down on either side.

"I'm so sorry, Peri." Connie sighed. "I didn't mean to mess up your training, I knew you were excited to be a teacher, but all that "you're nothing" talk… No one should think that about themselves."

"Including you!" Steven smiled weakly. "Did… Connie's mom make you feel like you were nothing?"

Peridot gave a sniff. "She never did." She gave a tiny chuckle and whispered, "She made me, a Peridot, one out of millions, she had made me… feel... like I was everything." Peridot shook away her tears and then asked, "Steven,  
do you promise me not to take her away from us?"

Steven blinked in surprise but nodded.

"Good.." Peridot smiled. "Then… maybe… this could work. I mean, despite how many times I tell her to use it, Connie never uses her shield anymore!"

Connie blushed and shrugged, "Ever since I relized I had destabilization powers… that power seemed to fade away, like it was hiding my true power."

"Well, I'll be your shield!" Steven cried.

Connie giggled and Peridot smiled, "You two are naturals at the sword and shield, you shall make an excellent team! I can't wait to see what you can do! Who knows, you may even beat me!... No, what am I even talking about?" Peridot  
laughed. She hugged both Connie and Steven close and beamed with excitement. 


	58. Rising Tides Crashing Skies

There was a filming of Beach City. "Beach City," The eldest son of the Fryman family narrated, "a sleepy seaside town. From far away, it looks ordinary, but take a closer look, and you'll start to notice the cracks in the facade…"  
The town crackled in the film.

Ronaldo was now in a room that had a banner in it. He sat in a spinny chair. "My name is…" he started, suddenly his chair turned the wrong way. "Uh…" He blushed. "My name is Ronaldo. For years, I've run a blog called "Keep  
Beach City Weird"." Pictures went across the screen, a man with his spirit exiting out of his body, a dinosaur-bird creature with horns and a screenshot from many weeks ago of Ronaldo getting attacked by Pumpkin Connies while the real one tried  
to help him. "My mission: keep Beach City weird, and also to expose the truth." There also a picture of a zoom in on Connie's stomach, pointing at it with "Baby? Maybe?"

"Most people choose to ignore my mind-blowing revelations," The chair turned dramatically. "but no one can deny it when the truth was pointing right in the town's collective face!"

It then showed a recording of the giant hand from days ago, "It's an invasion!" Ronaldo gasped while recording. "Look at that thing, it's right there!"

He then started narrating as the camera zoomed in, "Beach City needed to be saved, but from what?" It then showed a picture of the Crystal Temps smiling. It zoomed in as he yelled, "Duh duh duh!"

The title card played, showing 'Rising Tides/Crashing Skies: Danger on the Boardwalk, The Truth About the Most Dangerous Boardwalk.

Then, it cut to a interview with the grandmother of the Pizza family. "Ehh, I was just cleaning up some fish for a very big order when it happened. I heard this veeery peculiar rumbling, like "boom boom boom boom boom boom!" and then a sonic  
"BOOM!" and the fish I was preparing flew up into the air and fell on the ground!" A re-enactment that featured a lax animated fish tumbling around played. "I ran outside and saw this great big thing in the sky." The woman said. Ronaldo  
tilted the camera to himself, saying, "The town was under attack!"

"What is this for again?" The elder asked.

Ronaldo frowned and exsplained, "It's a web exclusive for my blo—"

It cut away to see his young brother, Peedee. He sweated nervously, "Oh! Uh, yes! That day was crazy. The Mayor said—"

"Were you scared?" His brother asked.

"What?! No! I wasn't. I was just concerned that something bad would happen to the shop…"

"So, you cried a lot."

"I don't know what you're talking about…" Footage played from a few days back of Peedee clinging to the fryshop.

"Let it go!" Mr. Fryman yelled.

"Dad... dad... no! Please, no!" Peedee cried. The footage ended and Peedee frowned. "I was under a lot of stress at that time, argh!"

Ronaldo put the camrea down and walked to his brother. "Aww... hey."

"What?" Peedee whispered. Ronaldo forcefully hugged him, saying, "I'm here for you, bro."

"I'm fine, let me go!" His brother moaned.

The elder looked at the camra, "You can't make up drama this good!"

Then, he was in his father's car, when they were evacuating. He narrated, "With the space hand closing in for a high-five of the third kind, we fled the town. But then, just as mysteriously as the space hand appeared, it exploded into an explosion."

A sudden explosion was heard and the father gasped, "What in blue blazes was that?"

"I think it was an explosion!" Peedee cried.

"Unbelievable, I missed it!" Ronaldo cried from the footage.

"There's no actual footage of the giant hand thing crashing into the beach, but here's a little re-enactment for you."

His hand went to the sand on the beach. He slammed in on a board representing the beach. "Whoooaahwooo-phhhh-woah!" Suddenly, a one eyed crab grabbed his hand. "Ouch! Ouch, ouch, ouch! Ahhhh... My hand! Ah!"

"Beach City was saved, but by whom?" He asked as it zoomed in to the hand ship.

He was in the bookstore with Lars checking out a book to Mr. Frowny.

"Sir?" Ronaldo asked. Lars looked up. "Huh?"

"Who do you think saved Beach City from the giant handcraft?"

"Oh! Hey man, um, may I ask why that camera's here?" Lars asked with a eyebrow raised.

"Just answer the question!"

"Jeez, sorry. Um, who saved us? Wasn't it Connie's... family? I think they pretty much keep to themselves... Connie says that they protect the planet and the human race... It sounds hard to believe, but I've seen some pretty wild stuff man."

Now, in Fish Stew Pizza, he was having a interview with Kiki. "Once, they made us hamburgers, and we were having a pretty good time, but then we were attacked by a huge creature!" Her twin Jenny suddenly walked on. She tilted her head,  
"Hey... you makin' a movie?"

"Oh, let him be…" Her sister smiled.

"It's a docu-web-a-mentry about the Crystal Temps." Ronaldo exsplained.

"Oh, they are c-ray-zy! One of them tried to knock me in the face! I ain't mad though…"

In the Mayor's office, Ronaldo asked again, "Mayor Dewey, who do you think saved Beach City from the handcraft?"

"Why, young man, I credit the voters with saving Beach City! My constituents know they've elected a mayor they can trust to—"

"Huh? No, I'm talking about the Crystal Temps."

"Heh, w-why?" The Mayor asked nervously.

"Well I'm covering the story-"

"Cover-up? WHAT COVER UP?!" Mayor Dewey cried for no reason.

"But—"

"SECURITY!" The man's bodyguards ran at the teen, covering his camera. "H-hey! You can't suppress the truth!" He yelled. The video fizzled out.

Ronaldo was once again sitting on his chair. "Obviously, the Crystal Temps were involved, even at the highest levels of local government. I decided to go to the source."

He was now outside the temple were Connie lived. The camrea was far away as he spoke, and Peedee shouted from the camrea, "Speak up!"

"RIGHT NOW, I'M STANDING DIRECTLY BELOW THE FORTRESS OF THE CRYSTAL TEMPS!" The teen yelled.

They came to the Beach House. "I'm now going to attempt to make contact with the mysterious, reclusive, and—"

Connie suddenly opened the door. "Hello, Ronaldo!" She turned to Peedee with the camrea. "Is that a camera?" The girl asked with a blush. "Uh, are you filming?"

"Yeah! We're making a movie about—" Peedee started.

"It's an investigative report, shot camera vérité." Ronaldo interrupted.

"Oh, I read about those!" Connie grinned.

"So, want to participate in a groundbreaking interview?" The teen asked. The girl nervouslygrabbed part of her hair, stroking it. "Er… I suppose…"

They sat in the living room. Connie was explaining the hand, "The giant hand? Oh, well… It was a spaceship coming to get us. I'm sorry, it must've ruined the town, I'll pay for the damages-"

"Us? I knew it! Connie, we know too much!" Ronaldo gasped.

"Oh, um, no, not us us." Connie said sheepishly, "I meant the Crystal Temps and I."

"Wait, so the hand wasn't here to snatch up humans for a human zoo, or interfere with our subsidized Beach City wind farm, or thaw out the cryogenically frozen pets of the one percent?!" The human asked.

The gem hybrid shook her head, " Sorry to disappoint, but no, I'm pretty sure it just came to Beach City for… me and the Crystal Temps..." Connie ended softly, obviously feeling a little guilty.

"Oh. So... if you and the Crystal Temps weren't here... we wouldn't have been attacked by the giant hand?"

"I.. I… er…" Connie gave a tiny sigh, "I guess not."

"And there it was." Ronaldo narrated, zooming in on a negative freeze of Connie.

The pictures came back, "The Crystal Temps weren't saving us, they were putting us in danger!" A sudden red X slammed on the picture of Connie and the Temps.

"I felt I had no choice but to lay bare this ugly truth to the unwitting citizens of Beach City!"

"Ma'am!" Ronaldo yelled, running to Nanefua and Kofi. The woman turned with suprise.

"Are you aware that the Crystal Temps not only saved the town, but also caused the invasion in the first place?" Ronaldo cried.

"Oh, well... no more fish are getting knocked out of my hands, so I'm not complaining."

He then interviewed Onion.

"Sir, sir! How do you feel about the Crystal Temps attracting an onslaught of dangerous space beings? Do you feel safe?"

Onion inhaled to speak, only to knock the microphone out of Ronaldo's hands and run away.

"Hey, you can't keep quiet forever!" The teen yelled after him.

In the fryshop, his father was frying.

"How can you possibly go on, knowing that we are under siege by forces meant to destroy the Crystal Temps?"

"How close are you to being done with this project?" His dad groaned.

"Just answer the question, Dad!" The stubborn teen growled.

"Ugh. I-I guess its pretty bad, but what's a regular old guy like me supposed to do about it? I've got work to do... and so do you, put down that camera." His father came up and blocked it.

It cut again to the kitchen as Ronaldo set up the camera in the kitchen and then he casually cleaned the dishes. Over it, he narrated, "Everyone was too afraid to realize that they were actually afraid." His brother came in and mopped  
the floor behind him, soon putting a "wet floor" sign down. "Beach City needed a hero, and that hero would have to be me." Ronaldo slipped on the water and fell very clumsily.

It cut again to night at the beach.

"Okay, everything's ready for our full on night time stealth coverage." Ronaldo said, backing away from the camrea.

Peedee, who held the camera then asked a reasonable question: "Is it really okay for us to be lurking around like this?"

"We're not lurking, we're investigating! This is a moment of true bravery, are you brave like me? I'm so brave to be doing this. COME ON!" He ran along the wall and hid when he heard a cry. Connie was falling but Lapis caught her and  
gently flew her to the ground as one-eyed crabs scuttled around them.

"STAY BACK, LITTLE BRO!" Ronaldo yelled.

"Oh, you really should be in bed." Lapis sighed, smoothing out the girl's hair. She then heard the snapping of claws and ran to it. "Bedtime can wait!"

Connie attempted to run after her but Ronaldo called her name before she could. Connie froze and slowly turned. "Guys? You can't be here at night! Please, go home-"

"CUT THE PLEASANTRIES!" Ronaldo yelled as Peedee ran after him. The teen confronted the girl. "You're all a danger to our city!"

"No…." Connie frowned.

"GUYS! NOW!" She heard Jasper yell. She and the camrea turned to see the Temps fighting a giant one-eyed crab. "OOOOOOOOOOOOh my gosh. What the heck is that?" Peedee screamed.

"Right now?!" Peridot cried, flating her pole.

"Oh my- YES, RIGHT NOW!" Jasper yelled.

Peridot slammed her flat sheet of metal onto the crab's head, pushing it deep in the sand.

"Great, now poke it in the eye!" Jasper barked. Peridot leapt up, rolled her pole to it's normal state, and fired. "Lazuli!"

"You called?" Lapis laughed, sending water clones of herself at the thing.

"Thata' gem! Now let's bubble this thing!" Jasper yelled.

The camrea turned back to Connie and Ronaldo. "This is exactly the thing I'm talking about, Connie

"But the Crystal Temps are here to help people, I promise!" Connie answered.

"But all the monsters just come here to get you guys, and then wreck things and put us in danger! Beach City would be way safer if you guys weren't here!" The Temps walked out behind him with a bubbled gem.

"Human, magic beings are drawn to us, but we were here long before this tiny, insignificant, little town even existed." Peridot said matter of factly.

"Who cares how long you've been here? Innocent people are in danger as long as you're hangin around!" Ronaldo growled.

Jasper raised a eyebrow. "Huh. I guess we'll just leave then, chubby."

"Wait, what?" Peridot said drly.

Lapis looked at Jasper with surprise. "You, you can't be serious!"

"But, Jasper!" Connie cried. Jasper grabbed her and put the girl on her massive shoulders. "Don't sass me, little lady. Clearly, we're not wanted here, so let's just leave." She walked away while the Temps followed.

"Jasper, this is uncalled for, Jasper, what about my stuff?!" Peridot gasped in horror.

"I like it here! And it's Connie's home!" Lapis cried, flying after her.

Ronaldo looked after them then glanced back at the camrea. "Uh... MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!" After a few seconds, he whispered, "Uh, you can turn the camera o—"

It cut to Ronaldo's home where Peedee sat peeling potatoes behind him. "Ah, that's right, I did it! Thanks to me, the Temps are gone forever!" Ronaldo grinned triumphantly.

"Hm, that's too bad, now you won't have anything to blog about anymore." Peedee sighed behind him.

"Come on, dude, I'm trying to finish the movie!" Ronaldo groaned.

"Well this relates to your movie," Peedee added, perking his interests. "you said it yourself, the Temps cause all the weird stuff in Beach City, so now that they're gone, there'll be no more weird stuff."

Ronaldo gasped in horror. "No, NOOOOOOOOO! What have I done?!" The screen froze and went red. "What had I done? I done bad." It cut back to his set and he said dramatically, "I made a terrible mistake."

It cut to Ronaldo running towards the temple, yelling back, "THIS IS A MATTER OF WEIRD AND DEATH!" Peedee ran behind him with the camrea, panting for air. "I'm going, as fast as I can!"

Ronaldo banged hard on the door, praying they were still there. "CRYSTAL TEMPS! You have to stay! Every messed up consequence of your presence gives me reason to wake up in the morning! Without you, my blog doesn't stand a chance!" He  
then fell in dispar. " Ah, I'm too late, what have I done? I've made Beach City NORMAL!" He cried, "I've broken my promise to the city, and to myself!" Jasper suddenly walked up to the door and frowned.

"Um… hey there."

"Ooooooooooh, you're still here! Please don't leave! I was wrong, stay and keep this town weird!" Ronaldo cried. He narrated over, "I had no idea how this Crystal Temp would respond to my plea. The answer will shock you."

"Never talk to me again, and then we might stay." Jasper said. She turned and left as Ronaldo started weeping, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" His sobbing turned to maniacal laughter.

It cut to Ronaldo standing on the Brooding Hill, as he liked to call it. "I had skillfully negotiated for the Temps to stay, perhaps I have a future in... intergalactic diplomacy?" He gave a laugh. "In the end, I suppose the Temps  
really do save Beach City— from being not weird!" The narrating ended and Ronaldo turned. "Okay, Peedee, I think that about wraps it up! Good job with the camera, bro!"

"Oh, thanks!" His brother cried. It cut to credits, mostly to Ronaldo, and the Temps still stared at it.

"Welp, that was ten minutes of my infinite life utterly wasted." Jasper grunted.

"Were we really gonna leave Beach City?" Connie asked.

Jasper laughed, "No, I just wanted him to shut up, he made you feel guilty, I just had to make sure he and you both realized that we truly are helpful to this town."

"I wonder how many people have seen this thing?" Peridot asked.

Lapis shrugged and clicked off. "Oh, we're the only ones, see?"

Connie smiled and clicked like on the Tube-Tube video. 


	59. Forced Togther

"We need to track down that Pearl. We found her pod. We know she's out there somewhere. She came to Earth with a job to do and odds are, she's still gonna try to do it. That's why I called you all down."

Connie glanced up from folding her romper. "Oh. So, you're not here to help me fold the laundry?"

Lapis and Peridot were also folding clothing, Lapis neatly while Peridot observing the fabric, seeing where she could stick her arms through, not organizing like the others.

"Oh, well… they can help with that." Jasper shrugged. "The chore wheel idea you had fell apart fast."

"Yeah, wonder why." Lapis huffed, motioning to a chore wheel Connie had made. Jasper's name was crossed out many times in red.

"Wasn't me." Jasper shrugged.

"We're a team, start acting like." Lapis sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Being alone has its perks." Jasper smirked. She slammed down beside Lapis. She made a messy pile behind her as they still talked.

"Why do you need this again?" Peridot asked, putting the article on her eyes.

Connie blushed and snatched it away. "Because I'm part-human girl, I grow and this is a must." She threw it behind her. She glanced at Lapis and grinned, "You should fuse with Peri! Oh! Or make Apatite, that could make this much  
faster!"

"Hey! Yeah! That's a-" Jasper started but felt Lapis glare at her. "Sorry kid, but no. We only fuse in deadly situations, you know that."

Lapis suddenly clenched Connie's blue shirt, and Connie saw it had a assorted pile of shells printed on, including a oyster with a pearl in it. "Jasper, you don't think Pearl would come looking for us, do you?"

"Nah. She was sent here to do something in the Kindergarten, remember?"

"Do you think she's still going to try to reactivate it?" Lapis sighed.

"I… hope not." Jasper bit her lip, looking guilty. "If she gets it back up and running, the injectors will turn back on."

"Injectors? What're those?" Connie whispered.

"You've already seen them." Peridot said. Her gem projected a injector. "Well, you've seen them disabled. If Pearl reactivates them, they'll pick up right where they left off, planting Gems in the crust of the Earth, where they'll  
incubate and suck the life right out of the ground," Jasper seemed to look at her huge build, her build that was only made from this Earth. "we can't let Pearl restart Gem production here, if we do, the entire planet will become..."

"Totally-" She glanced at Connie, hesitated, and then whispered, "skewed."

Lapis nodded.

"Don't worry, we'll stop her. C'mon, guys." Jasper called, walking up to the warp.

"Coming!" Peridot cried, running after. Lapis followed.

Lapis cocked her head and motioned to Connie, "C'mon, that means you too!"

Connie blushed in happiness and ran to them.

"You're a part-gem too." Jasper smiled, ruffling the girl's hair.

"Jasper, maybe we shouldn't bring Connie. This might be dangerous." Lapis whispered.

"I agree with Lazuli. We should have her stay." Peridot said.

"Are you two scared of that Pearl?" Jasper chuckled. They both looked away. Jasper frowned, "Well, she's gonna have to go through us first." They warped away.

* * *

Peridot projected a light from her gem and looked around. "Hm, it appears that nothing has moved since the last time we were here…."

"You're right. But just because Pearl hasn't been here yet, it doesn't mean she won't come." Jasper sighed.

Connie nodded.

"We gotta search this place."

Connie nodded once more.

"That way, we can make sure she doesn't show up!"

"Good plan!" Connie beamed.

* * *

Later, she was wandering around the kindergarten when she heard a voice: "Log date 6 5 2. This is Pearl, servant of Lady Rose Quartz, updating status." Connie snuck up and saw Pearl come on a elevator. "I am still stuck on this awful  
planet... However, the fusion experiments are developing quite nicely if I do say so myself. A few have even emerged early... Tonight, I shall proceed in the new plan after finishing this one of…" Pearl noticed Connie and gasped in shock. "You!"

Connie was surprised as well but took out her sword threateningly. "Don't move."

Pearl blinked and then looked around. "Are… the others with you?" Connie narrowed her eyes. Pearl then frowned and huffed out, "Well, it doesn't matter, I'll capture you either way, like she wants me to!" Pearl suddenly grabbed  
Connie's wrist so tightly she dropped her sword. Pearl started pulling her away in the direction of the warp and Connie yelled in protest, "Let me go! What do you want from me?!"

"Silly Connie, it's not what I want from you. If my lady wants you so badly for your humanness and gem, well then I must bring you to her." Pearl answered.

"Pearl!" They turned to see Jasper and the rest of the Temps with their weapons. Pearl gasped in surprise and Connie took the distraction as the time to slam her foot down on her pink slipper. Pearl gave a yelp and Connie ran, grabbing  
her sword

The Temps chased after Pearl and cornered her.

"Nowhere to go! You're cornered!"Lapis cried.

"That's what you think!" Pearl laughed. She leapt exspertly scaling the wall. Connie gasped in suprise.

"Who taught a simple servant to do that?" Peridot growled. She threw her pole at the gem and it hit a injector that collapsed on her, pushing her down. The thing hit the ground harshly.

"I-Is she okay?" Connie whispered.

Suddenly, Pearl imreged by fling off a piece with her sword.

"Of course she is!" Lapis growled in annoyance. She ran at the gem and let a water clone run at her. Pearl leapt right over it though and used the hilt of her blade to knock Lapis away, making the clone evaporate.

"You Crystal Twerps! Go ahead! Wreck this place! See if I care!" Pearl chuckled. "I already got what I needed, and I'll have Yellow Diamond soon enough!" She leapt away and her laughs echoed around. Lapis gave a growl, getting  
up, "Come on, Peri, let's go get her!" Peridot ran to her and grabbed her shoulders, letting Lapis fly off.

"Hurry, Jasper!" Connie cried, attempting to run. She kept trying until she realized Jasper was holding her up like a windup doll that didn't work unless you put it on the ground.

"If she wants you, you shouldn't follow her, besides, she didn't turn the injectors on. What did she do?" Connie glanced around and saw that was true. Jasper set her down and walked to the collapsed injector. She lifted in up to reveal  
a dark hole. "Down here, kid."

"You know, you're really smart and strong." Connie complimented. "No wonder you beat Garnet! You have more brains and brawn then Ruby and Sapphire combined!"

Jasper gave a weak smirk. "Welp, you'd be the first to think it."

Connie tilted her head in confusion. "Don't you know it?"

Jasper only leapt down in the hole and Connie followed.

"Jasper, may I ask you something?" Connie asked tentatively.

Jasper shrugged, "What is it?"

"Um… How did you know-" Connie gasped suddenly when they reached the control room. "This place… it's worse than before."

"No doubt about that." Jasper whispered, looking at ripped out collums. "Something's up."

Connie grazed her hand on the shattered crystal that made the power. It was still shattered… "The power's not even on. What could she be doing?"

Jasper frowned, walking up to a column. "She somehow ripped these out. She's doing something strange." There was a sudden rustling and Jasper looked to a column that it came from. She frowned in suspicion and walked up to it. Connie noticed  
and followed her. She gasped in surprise when she heard it too, the pillar shook. "Is there... something in there?" She asked. Suddenly, a small creature came down from the ceiling, it was a cut off blue leg with a orange hand seemingly  
glued on. Connie gasped in shock as more like it fell. Jasper picked one up and Connie walked up, tilting her head, "What are they?" Suddenly, the one Jasper was holding attacked Connie, clawing at her head and hair. She gave a short scream  
and Jasper quickly poofed it, holding it gently. Connie looked at the jagged shards and whispered, "It looks like... two gem shards stuck together…"

Jasper shook involuntarily and threw the shard away, disgusted. "Ugh!"

Connie looked at the demented things and choked out, "Are these all… gems stuck together?"

Jasper suddenly slammed her fist down on the ground, shattering it and making a dent. Connie gasped in suprise, "Jasper?"

Suddenly, the pillar started to shake once more and Connie held her sword out. "What was that?"

The thing exsploded and many gem shards forced together came out. They were shrieking and bodies formed from the shards for only a second. They reached out for freedom, but it was not granted. "Jasper. Jasper. What do we do?" Connie gave  
a cry as smaller versions of it started to attack. She prayed her gem destabilizing powers would come, but they didn't in her panicked state. "Please, talk to me!" She attacked it with her thick blade, poofing it. Connie realized the bigger  
one had grabbed Jasper and was holding her in place, she was shaking. Connie tried and tried to poof it but it was much too big!

Jasper gave a angry growl, blinking tears away. "These were Crystal Temps, shattered into pieces. They were buried together!"

"Jasper? Are you okay?!"

"They were forced together! URGH! No one should be forced to! This is wrong! Connie, destabilizatie them!" Jasper snapped.

Connie blinked, "I-I can't-"

"What do you mean, YOU CAN'T?!" Jasper cried, shaking more and more.

"I… It doesn't always work!" Connie yelled. "You can't just… use me!"

Jasper gave a growl in anger and finally pushed it away, poofing it. Connie glanced at her. "Are you okay."

Jasper was silent.

Suddenly, Lapis and Peridot entered.

"We lost her…" Lapis sighed. She saw Jasper holding the gemshards and slowly walked up. "Jasper? W-what is-"

Jasper gave a dark laugh. "She let this happen. She allowed this, Garnet allowed it to save herself!"

Lapis slowly relized and whispered out, "These… they were… No…. Homewprld did this?"

"OF COURSE THEY DID!" Jasper yelled, making Lapis gasp. "SHE DID THIS TO SAVE HERSELF! AND ALL OUR FRIENDS, THEY WERE IN THIS!"

Lapis held back tears. "Jasper… This isn't your fault!"

"OH SHUT UP!" Jasper shouted, shoving her away.

"Jasper!" Peridot snarled. She ran to Lapis and helped her up. "That is enough!"

Connie was shaking in shock and fear. She ran to Jasper and grabbed the shards. She bubbled them and bubbled them away. She panted and looked at the gems, and like a leader, whispered, "Let's go home."

* * *

A few hours later, Connie warped over to a hand of the temple which had a washer and dryer. She looked over to see Jasper leaning on the dryer. "Oh, um, hello Jasper."

Jasper didn't turn. "Here to check on me again?"  
She growled.

"I… how did you know?" Connie asked

"Because you've been doing it every ten minutes." Jasper snapped sharply. "Listen kid, I want to be alone right now."

Connie frowned and whispered, "Are you... alright?"

Jasper gave a light chuckle. "Nope. Just wish you hadn't seen that."

"Oh." Connie whispered. "It's okay."

"No it isn't, Connie." Jasper sighed, slumping down to sit. Connie walked up and sat beside her. "... Why?"

"What Homeworld did… taking the shards and parts of fallen gems and sticking them togther, these gems weren't asked permission." Jasper sighed. "Sometimes, fusions can be unstable, as you've both seen, but at least it was her choice-"  
Jasper paused and whispered softly, "Was it? Was it her choice?"

Connie gently put a hand on Jasper and the gem contuied, "Fusion is a choice, and those gems weren't given a choice. It isn't right. That… thing, isn't fusion." Jasper growled. They heard a beep from the drier and Connie got up and started  
to take clothes out. She bit her lip and whispered, "Do you forget who you once were? Once you fuse, I mean."

Jasper glanced back at her. "You've fused before."

"Yes, but I mean…"

"When you're in a unstable fusion." Jasper finished. "Like Malachite or Sugilite."

Connie gave a tiny nod.

"Well… Malachite probably forgets about Lapis and I when she's around, probably thinks we can never come out…. I never thought anyone else would feel forced into a fusion but-" Suddenly, a light blue sock flew from Connie's hand. She  
tried to reach it but Jasper caught it first. She looked at Connie, who was holding a orange sock. She smiled, "Nice catch. Better pair them back up."

Jasper looked out at the ocean and sighed, "No, they don't match…" 


	60. We Must Talk

Connie, Steven, and Doug were sorting through vinyl disks at the storage lot. Connie picked up three and laughed. "Dad, why do you have so much classical music? I thought you were a rocker!"

Doug smiled sheepishly, "I am! I just like all kinds of music."

"At home, we only have rock music. I've never heard any of this piano music." Steven smiled.

"You've never heard the Symphony of the Realms?" Doug asked. Steven blushed. "Oh man, give it here." Steven did so. "This'll really knock your socks off." Doug put it on and the music on and while Steven listened, Connie had her eyes closed and was rocking her head back and forth. Steven suddenly grabbed her hand, "Would you care for a dance?"

Connie giggled and accepted his hand, "Of course!" Steven tried to dance as elegantly as he could, following Connie's lead. Connie gave a laugh and they spun faster, making Steven laugh as well. Connie blushed and didn't notice the yellow glow coming from her gem.

Doug didn't either, only seeing Steven had grabbed his daughter's hand. "Okay you tw-"

Suddenly, they fused into Stevonnie. They laughed in a mixture of the two and then realized Doug had had jaw wide open. "I…" Stevenonnie whispered. Doug stopped the music and walked up to them.

"You two, b-better explain this!" He cried, as if not knowing how to separate the two when they were one being. Connie and Steven suddenly poofed back.

"Who… You and… Steven can fuse?" Doug whispered.

Connie nodded. "Yes… Um, the person you just saw was Stevonnie, are you mad?"

"N-no, pumkin, of course not, I just… Wow." Doug sighed, smiling.

"The Temps think it's something to do with me being part human-"

"Please, don't tell my dad, Doug!-" Steven cried, popping up beside her.

"When did I say you could call me Doug?" The father growled.

"Well never, but I, um, well-"

Doug gave a laugh and patted the boy's shoulder. "I'm only joking, Steven. Besides, I may be the only human being on the planet who's gonna understand."

"Hm, I am intrigued." Steven whispered. Connie smiled, "Me too!"

"Well…" Doug started. Connie suddenly gasped and cried out, "Oh! Are you going to tell us a story?" She and Steven sat on the trunk of his police car and watched him plug in a tv.

"I didn't think I'd be telling this so soon." Doug blushed, "Probably best to start with this." He put a VHS tape in and pressed play.

A younger Doug Universe adjusted the camera, and behind him, Jasper held a keytar and Lapis, a tambourine, Yellow Diamond was slightly taller then Jasper at this time, and she held a microphone. "Are we ready?" The human asked, turning to them. He ran to the warp pad stage, like they were filming a music video. He put down the effect pedal and held his guitar. "1, 2, 3, 4…" He and Yellow Diamond then started to sing together, " _What can I do for you? What can I do that no one else can do? What can I do for you?"_ Doug walked up to the warp pad and they grew close, "What can I do for you?"

Yellow suddenly started to sing a solo, " _Human man, you are so much fun. I didn't plan for a simple thing like you to be you quite this entertaining."_ Doug frowned at her words. Entertaining? " _I like your band…_ " Jasper gave a whoop behind her and Lapis giggled. " _... for, it's better than some. I like the way, human beings play, it gives me so much freedom."_ Connie's mother sang. " _Oh-woah-oh-oh-oh-woah-oh."_

Doug slowly started to sing once more, feeling rather strange now, unrespected, and for good reason, " _What can I do for you? What can I do that no one else can do? What can I do for you? What can I do for you?_ "

The couple, nor their supporters noticed Peridot looking at them bitterly. She gave a growl, and picked up the wire that connected the speakers, which she thought was yelling at her. She started rapidly chewing it in frustration. When it wouldn't break, she suddenly thought of a better idea.

She smirked and walked up as Doug started a guitar solo. She pulled on her diamond's armor, and the gem bent down to listen to her little ally's whisper. She smiled and nodded. Yellow Diamond got down from the warp pad and gently twirled Peridot, dipping her in front of Doug. Peridot smirked at the man as she went back up and suddenly, a glow emitted from them as they came together. A massive woman formed, that quickly shapeshifted herself smaller. She had yellowish-green puffs of hair, and a crossed bodice that was green with a yellow diamond stitched in, it was sleeveless. She had Peridot's tights with Yellow Diamond's skirt-like armor around it. The fusion wore heeled shoes and danced with them very well. She had Yellow's eye shape but the iris held no diamond like hers. The fusion danced in front of Doug, as if showing off but also wanting to impress him, which he clearly was. The fusion then fell into the warp pad and formed back into Yellow Diamond and her Peridot. The short gem smirked, grabbed a mirocphone and suddenly threw it into the bushes. Doug knew she wanted it to be as if she had dropped it, with the, "I win" kind of way, but she clearly didn't get that. The music stopped and Lapis flew over to get the microphone.

"Wow…. How did you… phase into that one being?! That was incredible!" Doug gasped, looking at Yellow with awe. The Diamond smiled. "That was Tashmarine, Mr. Universe. Peridot thought a fusion might give your video a little... something extra. Did you like it?" She leaned in to kiss him on the cheek but hesitatied, leaving just a faint touch. She smiled weakly, "Sorry, but I have to go. I'll talk to you later." She and Jasper warped away while Peridot still stood there, smiling devishly.

Lapis suddenly popped up beside him. "Hi Doug."

"Hey Lapis." He smiled wistfully, clearly still lovesick.

Lapis blushed and smiled, "Er, that was fun! We should hang out some more, right?"

"Uh-huh."

Lapis tucked a bang behind her ear and suddenly, Peridot grabbed her arm. She gently pushed Lapis aside and walked up to Doug. "Do you truly think you can keep this… relationship going for long?"

Doug glanced at her with disdain, "It's going okay now, so I'm not worried."

"Oh, well you should be." Peridot smirked. "She thinks you're like a little child she needs to protect, like all of this planet." Peridot then smiled, "All except me, of course."

"And what makes you so special?"

"Simple! I mean, for one, at least I can fuse with her! Fusion is the ultimate connection between gems, and stupid humans like you can't fuse!"

"Peridot, stop it." Lapis snapped.

Doug frowned as Peridot walked away, "Well, has any human ever tried fusing with a gem?"

Peridot paused and glanced back at him, "I-It's impossible-"

"If no one has tried, then I will." Doug dropped the microphone.

Lapis gasped in suprise. Peridot gave a grumble in annoyance and walked away, with Lapis following, "Good night, Doug."

"Aw geez, what am I doing? These things are expensive." Doug murmured, picking the mic up. Lapis sighed and warped away.

Later, Doug sat in his new storage lot, watching the video of their little gig. He watched it intently, watching Peridot's rather robotic movements.

"Doug!" He heard and turned to see Lapis practically leaning into him with Jasper behind her. "What are you up to?"

"Oh, um, hi Lapis." Doug sighed. "I'm just… trying to study this fusion dance."

"But fusion doesn't need studying, it just happens." Lapis laughed, giving a ditsy twirl before siting down beside him.

"Oh, you two have fused before, right?" Doug asked. Lapis looked at Jasper and then nodded, "Um… why do you ask?"

"Well, I need to fuse with Yellow."

Jasper and Lapis looked at each other with worry. Jasper slammed down beside Lapis and gave a cough, rubbing her neck, "Er, well… you don't have a gem… but, I do want to see where this leads, so…"

Doug sighed, "You're right. It won't work."

Lapis frown and whispered, "You could always… try, if you really love Yellow that much. You gotta dance like you, not like Peri, that's what will make you closer, you have to fully trust her, that's what fusion is."

Doug gave a small nod, "I think I understand…"

Later, Doug stood outside his car, he had wood planks covered in light bulbs that were now on the beach next to him. He wore a nice suit and had his hair slicked back, like a true gentleman. He heard the warp pad and put on some music. Yellow Diamond walked up and looked around, "What… is this?" Doug suddenly took her hands and twirled her into a dance. Yellow frowned and whispered, "I'm not good at dancing… I haven't done it in a long time." Doug shook his head, "That doesn't matter." They kept dancing, waltzing around the floor. Yellow smiled softly as Doug blushed and laughed awkwardly. She gave a tiny chuckle and he pressed a button with his foot and beautiful yellow bulbs lit. Yellow showed slight suprise with a eyebrow raised and they continued to dance. Soon, Doug had stepped up on a sterio to gain height and kissed the woman. Shocked, Yellow's eyes were diamonds, much like her future daughter's often did. Doug waited and realized, they hadn't fused. "We...we didn't fuse."

Yellow's eyes narrowed and she tore away, "What? You thought… we would fuse? But, you're just a little human."

"Little human?" Doug asked, seeing Yellow had her back to him.

"Yes. You are so… simple compared to my kind, you know. I would love to be a human, if only for a day. You're all so carefree, it's amusing to me." Yellow Diamond whispered.

Doug grimaced, heartbroken. "Look... these last few months have been great-"

"Yes." Yellow chuckled.

"But I'm getting a little worried about the future."

Yellow Diamond turned to him, "Hm, I wish I had a Sapphire here, but I suppose Jasper is the best I have for that."

"I'm starting to wonder if you... respect me?"

Yellow Diamond frowned and then laughed. "Strange… You are very strange!" She chuckled, "Unlike anyone I have met!" She kept laughing and Doug winched in suprise. "Yellow, please-"

Yellow kept laughing, as if she couldn't hear him, to wrapped up in his strange and exsotic question.

"Can you just-" Doug gave a sigh and suddenly cried, "Talk to me for one second, like a real person!?"

Yellow abruptly stopped laughing in shock and the music seemed to change. "W-what? Treat you like a… equal?"

"Is that so hard?" Doug laughed, tears in his eyes.

"But, I'm… and you're so… and…. she… are you telling me this isn't how it works?" Yellow Diamond asked, head tilted. "You're supposed to be like this, right?"

"Oh…" Doug whispered. "oh... this is so weird, you really... are a leader of another species…" He then started to laugh.

"Why are you laughing?" Yellow whispered, "I didn't-"

He broke down into tears and she cocked her head, "You're…. crying? I'm not used to this…."

"How are we gonna make this work?" Doug cried with a teary grin.

"Fusion?"

"No, us. We're really, really different." Doug sighed.

Yellow Diamond looked at him and whispered, "What do we do now?"

"Let's just... talk." They hugged. "I barely know you."

"That's a good thing." Yellow Diamond smiled.

"We really rushed into this."

"Everything on Earth seems fast to me."

"Do you... miss your home planet?"

Yellow smiled softly, tears in her eyes, "Certain things I left there, yes."

"If you had a whole army, how did you just end up with those three?" He nodded to a rock nearbyand Yellow Diamond glanced over and saw Jasper trying to hide, but failing. Lapis peeked over the rock but ducked when she saw them looking. Peridot was jumping to see. "Oh, them. They're all in one huge, long story, connected."

"I can't see! What are they doing?!" Peridot hissed behind the rock. Lapis shushed her.

"Have you... loved... other humans?" Doug asked.

"Have you?"

"Yes."

"Yes."

"Have you ever been... in love... with a human?"

"No." Yellow said. She then frowned, "How would I know?"

"It's torture." Doug laughed softly. Yellow suddenly stepped away, looking upset, "Is this torture to you humans?"

"It's the worst." Doug sighed.

Yellow cupped his face in her hands, "Y-You're lying. I would never hurt a hum-"

"No, you're not… hurting me, exactly."

"Then what am I-!" Yellow paused her spout of anger looking at his face, "I'm just really confused."

"Me too!" Doug smiled.

"I suppose, this is good. We've got one thing in common." Yellow smirked. Doug cracked a smile and Yellow Diamond took him. They began to dance again, laughing.

Peridot frowned behind the rock. "They're still dancing?! But that's not… it didn't work!" She sputtered.

"It sure did." Jasper smirked.

"What? No, it didn't!" Peridot huffed.

"It did!" Jasper insisted.

"He's my favorite… and he's with Yellow." Lapis blushed slightly.

"... I think he's her favorite too." Peridot whispered.

The story finished, Steven and Connie blushed heavily, with suprise on thier faces.

"Oh…" Connie whispered, mistified.

"You loved her." Steven sighed.

"I sure did. We talking to each other a lot after that…" Doug smiled. He sat beside Steven and Connie with a small smile. "Listen... humans and Gems... it's uncharted, undiscovered! You're gonna have to work it out together…." The kids looked at each other with tiny matching smiles. Doug looked at Steven and patted his back, "And Steven? I know I haven't been… the most open about you and Connie, but if you ever need to talk to another human being about this, you can always talk to me."

Steven gave a small nod.

"Human beings?" Doug smiled, offering a high five. Steven gasped, looking mistimed. He high fived him and laughed, "Human beings!"

Connie looked at the two and touched her gem and then clutched it, feeling alien as she whispered, "Human beings…"


	61. Koketid

The Temps were on the beach, Jasper had practically drilled underground while Connie dug in the moist sand Lapis had brought from the shore. Lapis watched Connie with nervous. That hole was getting pretty deep… Peridot stood beside her, the metal

particles in the sand lifting up.

"Rhaa! This isn't working!" Peridot cried. Lapis glanced at her and sighed, "Just… keep looking." She yawned slightly.

Connie was digging with a shovel in the hole, which was almost her height now, and gasped when she felt the sand collapsing in on her. "Lapis!"

"For all we know, Amethyst and Garnet's fusion could be right below us waiting to..."

Lapis was so tired, she didn't hear Peridot elaborating on her description of Suglite, nor Connie shouting for her until she noticed the rope she had tied on the girl's waist was moving wildly in its pulley Peridot had made. Lapis gasped

in shock and ran to it, pulling it up in a instant. Connie was covered in wet sand and untied the rope. Lapis brushed clumps of sand of her and hugged her, "You okay?"

"I'm fine." Connie smiled.

Jasper suddenly slammed out of the ground with a yell beside them, making them cry out in shock.

Jasper cracked her knuckles and Peridot sighed, "We've been searching for light years!"

"Light years measures light, not years." Lapis said.

Peridot gave a yell of frustration.

Connie glanced between them and Jasper gave a cough, "Guys, focus! We gotta find Garnet and the runt, that fusion is a ticking time bomb."

Connie frowned, "Will… Amethyst be okay?"

"Quartzs are strong, no matter what size… but one little runt against keeping a massive fusion underground… it can destroy."

Connie shivered slightly and then walked back to the sand, "Don't worry, Amethyst, I'll save you!" She yawned and almost fell onto the shore when Lapis caught her.

"We better take Connie home first." Jasper shrugged.

"What?" Connie yawned groggily. "I… I'm fine! Let's… keep searching!" She suddenly almost fell over again, and Jasper caught her.

* * *

The Temps walked into the house, Peridot gave a groan, "Why are we here?! We should be out there, searching! Not in here, not searching!"

"Sorry." Connie yawned. "I gotta sleep at some point."

"Connie isn't like us, she needs rest." Jasper explained.

Connie glanced at them and whispered, "Don't you guys need rest too? You look exhausted."

Jasper's face was lined with creases. Lapis' hair was disheveled and Peridot was squinting. "We look awesome." Jasper grunted.

Connie walked over to the couch and picked up pillows, "Look, you can't really get sleep until you try it. And maybe we can throw a little fun into the mix, with- a slumber party! Like a girls' night of fun!"

Peridot looked disgusted, "Girls' night?"

"Yeah! We can do each other's hair, and have a pillow fight-"

"And talk about cute boys you like." Lapis smirked playfully. Connie smashed a pillow in her face. "And we can then fall asleep peacefully, pretending like there isn't a vengeful fusion underground wanting to kill us."

Lapis smiled happily while Peridot gave a groan. Jasper put her hands on their shoulders. "Connie's right. You should stay here, relax, have a…" Jasper gaged and then said, "girl night… But I'm going. Because I'm always relaxed."

She finished with her teeth clenched.

"Jasper, please, please take me with you! I can't survive this!" Peridot cried, hugging her leg. Jasper pried her off. "Nope, you're staying, and having a slumber party." She walked away to the warp pad. She turned to Connie,

"Connie, put these gems to bed. Don't stay up too late. There's snacks in the fridge. So… bye." She warped away.

Later, in Connie's room, Connie was having her hair braided by Lapis and Peridot sat in front of Connie. The girl attempted to braid the blond star. The braid suddenly poofed back to a star and Connie frowned. "This… isn't working." They

were also watching Camp Pining Hearts, to keep Peridot happy. Peridot gasped in shock, "No! Paulette, no!"

Lapis sushed her and pointed to Connie who was drifting off, "I think it's time to turn the tv off, Connie needs to sleep, and so do you."

Peridot shook her head vigorously, "No! Never!"

Lapis grabbed the remote and turned off the tv.

Connie undid her braid, letting brown waves of hair go onto her nightgown. "I suppose, I am pretty tired."

Lapis nodded and peacefully laid her head down, using her hands as a pillow. "Good night, Connie."

"Good night, Lapis." Connie yawned. Connie lay down and felt someone watching her. She opened her eyes to see Peridot breathing creepily beside her, "Hi."

Connie cried out in surprise. "Peri! It's time for bed! You should try to sleep too, please!"

Peridot crossed her arms and closed her eyes halfway, "Am I asleep?"

"No, you should lay down." Connie exsplained.

"Ah ha!" Peridot cried. She laid down, having her head rest in her hands. "I've done it!"

"Er… still no… Close your eyes all the way." Connie sighed.

"I've done it for real now!" Peridot laughed after she closed her eyes.

"You can't talk while you sleep." Connie frowned.

"How is this even supposed to work?!" Peridot screeched.

"Well, it's easy!" Connie flopped down on the floor, "You just lie down, get nice and comfy," She put her hands behind her head, "Don't move...And don't think about…" She whispered softly out in tiredness, "Anything…"

The girl fell asleep.

In her dreams, Connie was in a beautiful dress, with her hair braided and in a bun. Jasper, Peri, and Lapis were behind her, as she stood in front of a door, with a lovely house to go with it. Lapis smoothed out her dress, looking like a sitcom

mother. "Are you ready?" Lapis asked, "You just got to knock on the door and you and Steven are off to your first school dance!"

"Lazuli, stop making such a big deal!" Peridot huffed. She was dressed like a stereotype older sister. "However, I do hope you have a good time at your social gathering."

Jasper touched Connie's shoulder, "Koketid!" Connie grinned, "Thanks for coming, Jasper! I'm kinda nervous, I'm going to the big dance!"

"Wow, the big dance." Jasper smiled, "Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

Connie blushed and nodded. She took a breath and put her hand to the door. She knocked when it slammed open. In contrast to the black and white world, Amethyst was full color. She was wincing in pain, silent. Her whips wrapped around her arms,

the purple thornes stabbing into her skin.

"Amethyst?" Connie choked.

The whips suddenly lunged out and wrapped around her. Connie cried out in pain, looking at Amethyst with horror. Suddenly, the whips held Connie in place, and pulled Amethyst away from her. Connie tried to reach her…

Connie gave a scream, volting awake. Peridot had been watching her and gasped. "Connie?! You're shaking, why?"

Connie panted in fear. She stood, startled and confused. "I… I had a weird dream… I knocked on the door, and Amethyst was there…"

"Why was she there? She and Garnet are fused and went into the earth." Peridot frowned.

"You've… never had a dream before, have you?" Connie asked.

"What is a dream?" Peridot asked, cocked her head.

"Well," Connie started. She slumped down, "dreams don't always make sense. When you dream, the thoughts in your head get all mixed up into a weird movie. And they're really hard to explain, which is why they're boring to listen

to. Like," She sighed, "this one time, I had a dream, where, like, these things... were being sold at the the bookstore, right? But the front door of the book store led to the back of my dad's car?" Lapis awoke and looked around in

confusion. "So, I go into the car, and... Lion is driving, for some reason, but, he's driving really well. And, and then I say to him, I, I say... Lion….Lion, how did you learn to drive you, a, cc-car? Y-you can't even, you, you can't.. bring...  
/me... my…" Connie fell asleep after being bored by her own dream.

Connie was now in her dreams, and she flew with a propeller on her back. She laughed until she saw a very familiar figure beside her.

"Catcopter! Mrs. Copter! Madam! I'm one of your biggest fans, can I please have your autograph?" Connie begged.

The cat turned it's head a barked at her.

"Huh?" Connie cocked her head. The robotic cat blasted away and Connie tried to catch up, "I hope the rumors in the tabloids about Catcopter aren't true." A large cloud beside her morphed into Peridot's head.

"This dream just keeps getting weirder and weirder." Connie whispered. Peridot suddenly ate her, chewed her up for a moment, and then spat her out. Connie now had rocket shoes and she smiled. She suddenly saw Lapis emerge from the mountains

bellow, riding a buffalo. They floated off and suddenly, all went black. Connie looked around, "This is strange…"

"What's happening?" A familiar voice asked.

Connie's eyes widened in surprise, "Hey, that sounds a lot like—"

"Connie?!" Amethyst cried behind her. Connie turned and ran to her, "Amethyst!"

"What are you doing in here, Connie?! Kid, get outta here!" Amethyst yelled.

"It's ok!" Connie insisted, "I'm just dreaming! It's fine!"

"What are you talking about?!" Amethyst cried, gripping her arms. "You gotta leave! I have to concentrate! How are you here?!"

Connie saw her panic and tiltedher head, clearly concerned, "Oh my gosh, are you okay?"

Amethyst gave a sigh, "Connie, please, I—!"

They suddenly heard someone calling the girl's name, "Connie? Are you okay? Connie?"

"Amethyst!" Connie cried, jolting awake. Lapis sat beside her, a look of concern. "Are you okay?" She repeated, "You looked like you were having a nightmare, a bad one." Connie rubbed her eyes and nodded, "I saw

her. I saw-"

"My Diamond, this is wonderful!" They suddenly heard. They turned to see Peridot fast asleep, her gem projected her dream. In it, she was riding a slice of pizza on a wave, holding onto Yellow Diamond. "I'm just having so much fun

spending time with you!" The gem squealed in happiness. She blushed and said, " Forget about Doug! Let's go travel the galaxy!"

Yellow Diamond responded, "Peridot, thank you so much…" She turned her head to reveal Doug's face on her body, "—for fixing my van!"

Peridot screeched in horror and Doug gagged as a slice of pizza slid from his mouth.

Peridot screamed, waking up and breathing hard. She held her hand over her mouth, gagging and disgusted.

"Peridot…" Connie whispered.

Peridot broke her horror to see Connie, "What is it, Connie?"

"I had... another dream about Amethyst." Connie sighed. Lapis looked at her and then at Peridot with worry.

"Oh! Heh, heh, that's fine! That's great! Dreams aren't real! They're just "mixed up movies"!" Peridot smiled, clearly thinking of her own nightmare.

"But I-I think I was talking to her." Connie explained.

"What?" Lapis whispered, "Are you sure?"

"Well… no," Connie admitted. "but... I could just feel it. She was yelling, and... she was really upset."

"What did she say? Is she still in control?" Peridot asked in panic.

Connie gave a sigh, answering the question, "I… I don't know."

"This could be a stretch, Connie," Peridot started, "but perhaps you're could be using your dreams to connect her mentally."

Lapis looked at Connie with worry, "Can you do it again? Maybe she can just tell you where they are."

"I guess I have to go back to sleep!" Connie cried. She laid down on the floor, "Quick! Peri, tell me about your dream so I can fall asleep!"

"M-my dream?!" Peridot sputtered.

Lapis gave a gag, "Please don't. It was… really werid."

"Peridot! Please! I need to see Amethyst!" Connie cried.

"Okay. I'll do it! Now stop pleading with me!" Peridot groaned, closed her eyes and breathed in. "Well, in my dream, I was…" She heard a tiny snore and looked up to see Connie had fallen asleep. "How did she do that?!"

"It's a talent." Lapis explained, almost asleep herself.

Connie slumbered peacefully, but in her mind, she was on a stress-filled hunt. She swam in darkness, looking for Amethyst.

"I know she's in here somewhere…" Connie whispered. Elements of both dreams and reality floated past her as she search. "Amethyst, where are you?" Connie sighed, worried, seeing a whale, Lapis, Jasper, Peri, but no Amethyst.

She suddenly bumped into a mass of purple fur. She looked at it and frowned, "Huh?" She suddenly fell through the fur and landed on hard, hot rock. Connie winced in pain and was surprised to see she hadn't gotten a scratch. She suddenly

heard grunting and turned to see the short purple gem holding the handles of her whips with effort.

"Amethyst!" Connie cried, running to her.

Amethyst turned and gasped, "Connie! Why do you keep coming back, kid?! I can't get distracted, I've got to hold us down, under here!" Amethyst struggled to speak, "Rhaa! I gotta keep 'er down!"

"Wait! Amethyst, tell me where you are! We can help you!" Connie said, trying to calm her down.

Amethyst stopped struggling for a moment to look at the girl, the one that had saved her, and wanted to again, even after what she did. Suddenly, the force she was fighting saw her weakness at the moment and pulled her down. Amethyst groaned in

effort. "I told you! I don't need you to hel-" She suddenly let out a growl before she slammed underground. Connie gave a cry and heard the rocks behind her explode into dust. Connie turned and saw Garnet on all fours. The calm expression

Connie was used to seeing on her was long gone. The fusion saw trembling girl and crawl to her with fury and hatred in her eyes, "You!"

Connie gasped in shock, "Garnet!"

Garnet crawled to her, looking like she was going to strangle the girl, trying to grab her, "You! YOU! YOU!" The girl fell over and winced. Garnet's hand was inches away from Connie's face. Suddenly, Garnet was dragged away. She gave

a yell in anger as she went back underground.

Amethyst came back up, having shapeshifted into her wrestler size. Amethyst panted for air.

"Can't you see?" Amethyst cried, her voice cracking, " I can't stop, not for a second. Just… don't look for me. I don't need your help, I protect myself!"

"But—" Connie protested, trying to help.

"Just let me protect you!" Amethyst yelled, making the girl fall back.

"Amethyst…" Connie whispered softly.

"No!" Amethyst cried, "Don't you get it?!" Her eyes darkened as her whips pulled away from her. "I'm not Amethyst anymore… We're Suglite now."

Connie gave a cry as Amethyst sank underground. "Amethyst, no!"

Suddenly, the ground she was on rumbled and the section rose up. Sugilite slammed out of the ground and turned to Connie. Three of her eyes were angry while the other two were hardened with worry, "GO!"

Connie gave a scream, jolting awake, "Amethyst!"

Lapis hugged her close and whispered in her ear, "It's okay… It's okay… Shh, we're here..."

"Did you see her? Is she still in control?" Peridot asked with concern.

"She's still fused, and she's still in control," Connie sighed, "but I don't know for how long, and—"

Jasper suddenly walked up and saw Connie clearly upset with Lapis hugging her and Peridot hyperventilating. "I think I missed something..."

Connie got up and ran to Jasper, hugging her arm and quickly saying, "We have find them, Jasper! We just have to!"

"Hey, calm down. Who are we talking about here?" Jasper asked, gently stroking the trembling girl's hair

"Sugilite!" Connie cried.

Jasper's face hardened, and she turned, walking down the stairs, "That's it! I'm not resting until I-" Connie suddenly grabbed her arm with a cry and Jasper glanced down at her. "You just got here. Please don't leave… I don't want

to go back to bed..." Connie sighed.

Jasper looked at Peridot who was softly talking to Lapis, clearly about what they had seen. Jasper looked back at the girl and smirked, "Fine… but don't you touch my hair or talk about boys or whatever Lapis was doing."

Connie smiled weakly, "Thanks…"

* * *

Since the original was named Chili Tid, which means chilling time in Norriegan , this, which is kinda a opposite switch,is called Koketid which means Boiling Time. Weirdtitle, I know.


	62. Cry for Help

Connie was reading a book on the symbols in dreams. Though that night hadn't felt like a dream once Connie had seen Amethyst, she had to try and find out more. Her phone suddenly rang it's jaunty tune and Connie picked it up, seeing it was Steven.  
She flipped it open and answered, "Hey Steven-!"

"Connnnnie! Something's happening!" Steven cried.

"What do you mean?" Connie asked.

"The TV! Something's wrong with the TV a-and there's a gem-"

Connie immediately turned on the TV to see Pearl. "I… gotta go." She hung up and stared at the TV.

Pearl gave a cough and then spoke, "This is the pearl of Lady Rose Quartz and I…" She sighed and whispered, "Garnet and Amethyst are gone, I can't find Yellow Diamond… and I'm stuck here… Please send help!" Pearl cried in desperation.

style="margin: 0px; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; font-family: '.SF UI Text'; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);" 

The video repeated after the rest of the Temps had gotten there.

"Hm... where could this Pearl be broadcasting a signal that strong?" Peridot muttered.

"There's only one place." Jasper frowned.

* * *

Lion hopped out of a portal with the older Crystal Temps riding on his back. He collapse immediately after and Connie popped out of his mane.

"You okay, boy?" Connie asked, gently petting his fur.

"Knew it." Jasper muttered. Connie looked up to see the Communication Hub which she thought would be gone forever. It shot up a beam to the sky.

"How was a pearl able to do that?" Peridot whispered.

Connie looked at her hands, "... Jasper, you can't form Malicite, not again. My powers are unpredictable now."

Jasper looked at Lapis who didn't want to meet her eyes. "Lapis?"

Lapis glanced up, "Jasper, I know you like to be fused with me, and that we feel really powerful together… but it's just too dangerous. We know what happens, she's… we're unstoppable."

There was an uncomfortable silence for a few moments, and then Jasper turned to Peridot with a sigh, "Do you want to fuse then?"

Peridot glanced at Connie, then at the pillar behind her, was she actually talking to her? She turned back to Jasper with stars in her eyes, "M-Me?"

"...I swear if you cry…" Jasper started.

Peridot gave a loud sniff, trying to stop her eyes from tearing up, she was failing. Jasper smirked and then turned, walking to a open area. Peridot ran after her.

"Fusion!" Connie cried. Lapis looked surprised and a bit sad. Connie didn't notice, pulling her away to watch.

"I can't believe it!" Peridot squealed, cracking her knuckles, "We're fusing!"

"Ok, think I'm ready." Jasper said after stretching. Her gem glowed.

Peridot smiled, "I'm ready too!" Her gem glowed as well. They walked to each other and Jasper suddenly ran to Peridot. They hooked arms and Jasper flung the gem into the air. Peridot grinned and had her body like a star. Jasper grabbed  
her legs and flung Peridor back to where the gem hung upside down with a happy grin. They disappeared and a fusion opened her eyes. She was light orange with a long triangular shaped mane of hair. She had a crossed dark orenbe and green shirt  
that showed off her stomach and baggy pants that were the same color. She yawned and stretched, "Oh! It's been too long!"

Connie squealed in happiness while Lapis held a weak smile, "Hello, Andalusite. It's good to see you again."

The fusion suddenly cartwheeled and laughed, "It's good to be back!" She rolled over and giggled.

Connie ran up to her with a beam, "Hi! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

Andalusite turned to her and put her head on her arms. "Connie! I've already met you, silly goose! Known you your whole life." She winked, gently bopping the girl's nose.

"Oh, yeah." Connie blushed with a giggle.

"Sorry, I'm just so excited to be here." The fusion gushed, standing. "You see, I haven't exactly been myself lately." She started a rough chuckle and Connie giggled beside her. She turned to Lapis who forced out a small  
laugh then said, "Er… Andalusite, don't you…. have something to do?"

Andalusite gave a smirk, "Ah, someone's jealous."

Lapis blushed gently and shook her head, "What? No, no, I-"

"Sure, sure, Lazuli." The fusion said, walking away. She then smiled, "I guess I do got some work to do though." She then formed a giant version of Jasper's helmet and scrap metal from to ground slammed into it. The gem  
gave a mighty cry and the helmet split apart into multiples.

"Whoa! Shotput! Like the olympians!" Connie squealed.

"Pretty great, hm?" The fusion smiled. "I have control over myself, making this weapon probably one of the coolest weapons ya' seen from a fusion." Connie nodded while Lapis wilted behind her. "And after this, kiddo,  
you're going to say that it's," The fusion slammed one of them into a pillar, knocking it out, "precise!" Another fell, "bold!" yet another, "Amazing! Athletic! And powerful!" The fusion smiled as the last one  
was about to hit the top pillar, "And to think, with all that, I'm still the amazing me!" The shot put hit the tower gently and it all collapsed. She landed in front of Connie, Lion, and Lapis. The fusion gave a bow, "Now, if you  
ever need me again, just let Jasper or Peri know and I'll be there!" She stretched out her back and she was gone. In her place, Jasper held Peridot still upside down. Jasper gently put Peridot to the ground and the small gem ran to Connie,  
"Weren't we great? Isn't she amazing?!" Connie only nodded in reply. "I'll accept your praises now!" Peridot said trimputly.

"You two were so cool!" Connie gushed, "I loved her weapon and her jokes were great too…!"

Jasper glanced away from Connie and instead focused on Lapis. The ocean gem smiled and gave a few gentle claps, "Good job."

* * *

Steven, Connie and Jasper sat watching Crying Breakfast Friends.

"Why, Pear? Why did you lie to me?" Sobbing Spoon cried.

"I didn't mean to-" The Pear started sobbing. Connie touched her heart and Steven looked back at Jasper, "Aw, Pear. I'd forgive her. Wouldn't you?"

Jasper's eyes narrowed.

Steven started to sweat and turned away to see Lapis reading a magazine on the couch below them, "Lapis! Wanta watch Crying Breakfast Friends with us?"

Jasper glanced at her.

Lapis smiled politely with a small shake of the head, "No, but thank you, Steven."

Jasper turned away.

"Well, I'm still recording it for later." Connie replied. The tv suddenly started to glitch out again and Connie gasped, "No way, it's the signal again!"

"Pearl!" Jasper hissed. Peridot walked in at that exact moment and Jasper snapped her head to her, "Peridot! The signal is back!

"Seriously?" Peridot cried.

"Come on, let's go." Jasper grunted.

"Right." Peridot nodded, "Connie, where's Lion? Steven, go home, we don't need you right now, and Lapis, get your head out of that book!" She paced to the warp pad and the rest followed while Steven sadly waved goodbye to  
Connie.

* * *

At the Communication Hub, Jasper and Peri were all ready to fuse again.

"You ready?" Jasper smirked.

"Of course I am!" Peridot said proudly. They fused once more and Andalusite appeared, "Hey! I'm back! Couldn't get enough of me, could ya'? She winked, "Now then, let's start!" She leapt into the air.

Connie heard a soft singing behind her and turned to see Lapis sitting on a rock with her back turned.

" _Just know, you're better off with her… I know she likes fusing with you. I guess I'm so scared to be us. Just don't want her to take it all away…_ " Lapis whispered, looking at the smashed warp pad. " _I know togther, we forever are strong, but can't you just see? Her insaness must be my tower of mistakes, and she's evil, thanks to me…_ "  
The gem sang sadly, hugging herself. She turned to see the tower was destroyed and the fusion landed in front of Connie. " _Oh, I wish there was something I could doo-oo… Something, anything just for you… So, my apologies simple, but it's true:_ "  
She bit her lip seeing Jasper and Peridot smiling as they unfused. " _I'm so sorry I did this to you…_ "

Connie looked at her with sadness and then thought up a plan.

* * *

Connie and Lapis rode on Lion that night at the still broken tower.

"Pearl's been back here twice. So my hypothesis based on this concludes she'll come back again. And then, we'll get her." Connie smiled. Lapis gave a tiny nod with a laugh, "Okay, but rember, only a few minutes out here and then  
into bed."

"Okay!" Connie groaned. "Jasper's going to be so proud!"

Lapis cracked a smile, "Oh… is that what this is?"

They soon hid behind some rocks. Connie stuck a telescope in the hole in her rock and looked around. "I'm on a stakeout, just like dad!" She gushed. She looked around some more, "Nothing, more nothing…" She then saw a figure  
resembling Pearl on the horizon, "Ah! There she is!" She zoomed in then realized it was just a cactus shaped like Pearl. "Nevermind…"

Time went by with Connie and Lapis becoming more bored each minute. Connie soon sat on the ground and seemed to be counting her fingers. Lapis turned to her, "Okay, time for bed!" She noticed Connnie's strange behavior and frowned,  
"Whatcha doing?"

"Oh, I found this new mind trick online and I'm testing it out! It works!" Connie exsplained. "You use your right forefinger to point with, and touch each finger of your left hand, counting out loud. Then, with your left  
forefinger, you count the fingers on your right hand. It will make you believe you have eleven fingers!"

Lapis grimaced but eventually tried it. She did as Connie said and gasped, "It does work! I felt the erdge to shapeshift another finger out!" Connie giggled.

"Well, even if we didn't catch Pearl, at least I taught you a great way to pass the time!" Connie beamed. She went back to counting when she saw a small turquoise light shoot across the ground between her fingers. She gasped.

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"What is it?" Lapis asked, concerned.

"I think I saw something!" Connie cried, scrambling to her telescope. She peered in and saw Pearl's escape pod traveling to the tower.

"It's Pearl's escape pod… How did she get it? Did she steal it?" Connie murrmered, watching the pod build the Hub back up using tractor beams. "She's lifting the pillars, and she's fixing the hub…" the pod landed  
on top of the hub and Pearl got out, or at least what looked like Pearl. "What's she doing up there?" She zoomed in and gasped. She waited for the gem to reveal her face and her suspicions were correct. "It's… Peridot…"

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"What?" Lapis gasped. She gently pushed Connie aside and peered into the telescope, "Oh no."

* * *

The next morning, Lapis and Connie sat staring at the TV, even though it wasn't on.

"Why would Peridot rebuild the hub?" Connie whispered.

"I think I know, but I hope I'm wrong…" Lapis sighed. Connie turned on the TV but the screen was filled with static like before. They flinched when they realized Peridot was right behind them, clearly doing terrible acting.  
"Oh , this is no good!"

"What's wrong?" Connie whispered nervously.

"It's Pearl. She must've fixed the Communication Hub again!" Peridot cried. Jasper walked up as Lapis and Connie exchanged worried glances. "Jasper, it's the hub again."

"I can't believe Pearl is giving us so much trouble!" Peridot laughed nervously, "But it hardly matters, right Jasper? We can disable this tower as many times as we need to, together! Okay? Okay. I'm ready. Are you ready?"

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"I know what she's doing." Lapis sighed. Connie glanced at her with worry, "You do?"

They saw Jasper and Peridot were about to fuse and Lapis blurted out, "Wait!"

Peridot frowned, "This better be good, Lazuli."

"You-you shouldn't…" Lapis blushed, looking at Jasper.

"Peridot... we saw you." Connie sighed, looking away.

"What?"

The girl look back with hurt in eyes, "You need to tell Jasper it was you!"

"Kid, mind telling me what you're talking about?" Jasper said through gritted teeth.

"Er… I'm sorry…" Peridot whispered, "I-It's just... so much fun being Andalusite with you." Jasper dropped her to the ground.

"You little-"

"Wait! D-don't shatter me… Let me explain!" Peridot cried.

"Oh ho, this is good, this is really good." Jasper chuckled darkly while Peridot backed away, "To think, I thought I was protecting my team from some crazy gem, when really, it was all you fixing the hub!"

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"It really was Pearl! T-The first time…" Peridot

whispered.

"You tricked me!" Jasper snapped, grabbing Peridot up by her shirt collar.

No! No, no, no, no! We just needed a reason to fuse! I just wanted to share a few more victories with you!" Peridot cried, struggling in the gem's grip.

"Those weren't victories!" Jasper growled. Lapis ran up and grabbed her arm, "Stop it! Please! I know how you feel about it, but fusing with you makes us feel so… powerful."

Jasper threw her aside, "Listen here, brat! Don't defend her! Pearl is out there somewhere and Peridot's been distracting us with... nothing!" Lapis shook in fear, cowering in her shadow. Connie was so shocked and  
her hands surged with power. "Guys…"

Jasper glared at her, "Oh, do you have something to say now?!"

Connie gulped. She hated when Jasper went berserk like this!

"Stop! Don't bring Connie into this, this is my fault!" Peridot cried, running to Jasper. "Punish me!"

"That's enough!" Jasper yelled. Peridot fell back. Jasper snapped her head to Lapis, "I don't care what you think," She grabbed Lapis by the wrist and pulled the water gem to her face.

"Jasper, please! Don't!" Lapis begged.

Jasper tightened her grip, "You're fusing with me!"

"No!" Lapis cried. They vanished and Malachite appeared. She laughed and slammed the tower apart.

"Help! Help me please!" Lapis' voice suddenly rang out, "I can't do this again! Please!"

Connie felt her hands burn with light as Peridot watched in horror. The girl gave a cry as the power escaped her, pushing her to the ground and all they could see was yellow light.

* * *

Connie fiddled with the bandage on her arm a few days later as she watched Crying Breakfast Friends with Steven and Lapis.

"Please, forgive me!" Pear cried.

"Of course I forgive you!" Spoon sobbed. They hugged and started crying again. Lapis glanced down to see Peridot walk into the Beach House and Jasper warp in. They walked past each other without making eye contact.  
Peridot sighed.

"It sure would be nice if things worked out the way they do in cartoons." Lapis whispered.

"Yeah. It would." Steven said, Connie had told him everything. Connie sighed and pointed the remote at the screen, turning it off.


	63. Keystone Motel

Connie sat in her room quietly talking with Steven on the phone: "Yeah. And then she forced Lapis to fuse…. Yeah, I know, I know it's crazy, but what can I do? They won't talk to each other at all!... Of course you can come over tomorrow,  
you're the only company I have right now." The warp suddenly came up and Connie whispered, "Got to go."

She ran down to see Peri. "Peridot! Peridot! You're back! Where have you been?"

Peridot gave a nervous laugh, "Oh, just looking for that meddlesome pearl!... For three days straight!" Connie bit her lip. Peridot sighed, "Where's Lapis?"

"She's been in her room this whole time…" Connie explained. Peridot frowned and tilted her head, "Why is the ground shaking?"

The door suddenly slammed off its hidges and Connie gasped in fear. Jasper walked in silent and glared down at Peridot, "You're back."

"Heh, heh, yes! Yes I am! I was looking for Pearl and I-" Jasper walked past her and to the temple door. She roughly knocked on it, "Lapis, you can come out now, I need to talk with you!" She said with a forced smile and  
sing song voice.

"No! I'm not coming out and I am not fusing with you again! You're insane!" Lapis yelled from inside.

Jasper gave a growl when suddenly, Doug walked in. He looked around at the open door frame and then at the gems, "Um…. Is this a bad time?"

"This is the worst time, Doug. Now go away." Peridot huffed, shooing him away. Connie ran to him and hugged him, "Dad! I packed my stuff!"

Peridot frowned, "What?"

"Oh, er, Dad's going to the Keystone state, to get some flashlights, even though they really burn… and I'm joining him at a motel… and staying a few nights at his house after that…" Connie murmured, heaving her backpack on.

"I'm coming too." They turned to Jasper.

"Er, t-that's okay, it's not too great." Connie struggled out.

The temple door opened and Lapis walked out, "... I'm sure it's fine. Can I come too?"

Connie glanced at her dad for help. "Er… Well…" Doug started. Connie glanced between the two, they both looked so lost and broken…

"Of course you two can come." Connie smiled weakly.

"And what, I'll just stay here?" They all looked at Peridot, "Ok, I'll just stay here! Have fun."

* * *

They were finally at the motel after a long and a silent car ride. Connie ran to the bed but hesitated before jumping in, "Dad? Do you think there's any bed bugs in here?"

Doug looked up after Lapis had sat down on the bed silent and Jasper had brought in all the luggage. "I'll check." He walked up and checked for bugs while Jasper started at Lapis, as if daring her to turn around.

"Good news everyone, we officially have no bugs!" Doug grinned. His phone lit up and he smiled, "Gotta go, get those flashlights! If I'm not back in a hour," he said, opening the door, "call me."

"Got you on speed dial!" Connie smiled. "I love you!"

"Love you too!" The door shut and Connie glanced at Lapis and Jasper. "You guys okay?" There was silence until, "You know, I'm never forgiving Peri, right?"

Lapis gave a sigh, "You have to, Jasper, she made a mistake, move on."

"Urgh!" Jasper yelled, grabbing her wrist and pulling Lapis around to look at her, "Can't you just face me anymore?!"

"Stop being so dramatic! I know why you did it!" Lapis snarled, "I know part of you fused with Peridot so you could make me jealous!"

Jasper looked defeated, "I…. you… LITTLE BRAT!" She shoved Lapis aside and slammed out the door. Lapis glanced at Connie, "Sorry…"

* * *

Connie went outside in her swimming suit and saw Jasper pacing back and forth, muttering, "Stupid Peridot. Stupid Lapis!"

"Jasper?" Connie whispered. The hulking gem suddenly picked up a large rock on the side and threw it at the pool, "How do you like that?!"

The pool suddenly hurtled the rock right back into her and Lapis' face formed, "You need to focus! Pearl's out there, looking for Connie! You-"

Jasper gave a growl and slammed down to sit on the concrete.

"Um… anything you should maybe talk about to Lapis?" Connie whispered.

Jasper glared at her, "No."

"You sure?"

"Yes!" Jasper picked Connie up by the waist and threw her into the pool. The girl gave a suprised giggle as she cannonballed into the water. A fist wrapped around her made out of water and put her back on the surface. The water went out  
of her hair and suit and it patted her on the head. It pushed her to the motel door and she got it's point. She opened the door and saw Lapis had her head hanging limp with a dark look in her eyes. Water seemed to flare around her as it went back  
and forth in her aggression.

"Lapis? Are you alright?" Connie asked tentatively.

"C-Connie! I didn't notice you come in.. I'm alright." Lapis said in a high voice. "Just… fine." The water went into ice for a moment and then melted back. Connie slowly got on her bed and whispered, "Thanks for drying  
me off."

Lapis gave a small nod, "Yep."

"Er… want to watch some TV with me?" Connie asked. Lapis gave a small nod, "Sure…"

The TV flicked on and Connie looked at it with little focus, "Did she always force you to fuse into Malicite?"

Lapis started in surprise, "Huh? Oh… not at first…" She looked at Connie with nervousness but then smiled weakly, "Come on, let me show you something."

Lapis lead Connie to the pool and Lapis checked around for Jasper. All they saw was a large dent that went a few feet down, Jasper must have pounded it out of anger. As for the gen herself, she was gone. Connie looked around worriedly, "Where  
did she go?"

"Wherever she is, we both know she can protect herself." Lapis whispered, collapsing into a sitting position with her legs curled up underneath her. Connie walked up beside her at sat down. Lapis gave a sigh and the water from the  
pool lifted up.  
It widened and went down around Connie and its mistress like a dome. The past seemed to appear around Connie and she twisted around in amazement. They were in the strawberry battlefield with all the strawberries gone, not yet grown. Connie glanced beside  
her and gasped. Right beside her was her mother, how tall she was compared to her little daughter… She then heard Lapis speak, "The first time we did fused… it was my first time ever trusting my light to anyone," Connie saw a young Lapis  
with her hair in a bun and a silk blue dress ran in and lightly twirled right into Jasper's arms. The big gem lifted her. "I was scared, and that was what first made Malachite so unstable, and made her… horrible." The present Lapis whispered.  
They vanished and Malachite appeared… She faded away and for a moment… it was still…

Connie glanced at Lapis and softly asked, "What happened after that?"

"Jasper felt the power and strength of Malachite, and… well, she felt like she was the most powerful being in the world." The world appeared again and they were now in a cave, the Temps old home. Young Lapis warped in and at that  
moment, Jasper came out of the temple door. "In secret, she often begged me to fuse again," Jasper walked up and grabbed Lapis' hand, saying something in desperation. Lapis pulled away and sadly shook her head. "but I always refused…  
Then, she started forcing me to."

Connie was shocked. How could Jasper do that? "How did you get her to stop?"

Lapis gave a tiny smile and glanced at her, "You stopped her, Connie. When Jasper met your dad, she started to calm her obsession, seeing as Yellow started to love him. And… when you came, she stopped all together, knowing there would  
be no one to stop us if Yellow wasn't there. Besides, we all wanted you to grow in a happy home. I'm sorry you had to see what you did."

Connie bit her lip, "Oh… it's okay."

They suddenly heard Doug's voice calling out for his daughter and Lapis let the water flow back into the pool. Connie ran to her father while Lapis walked over without the usual greeting. Doug glanced between them, "Is something wrong?  
Where's Jasper?"

"Don't know." Connie sighed. Lapis walked back in the room without speaking

"It okay, sweetheart." Doug said, walking to his car. They both hopped up on the hood of the car and Doug gave Connie her dinner. Connie opened her box and frowned, "Where's the vegetables?"

Doug glanced at the pasta and gave a laugh, "Not all pastas need vegetables, treat yourself."

Connie twirled her fork around and then whispered, "Will Lapis and Jasper be okay?"

"Sometimes, people who care about each other can hurt each other…" Doug sighed.

"I hope they can work it out…. if only Malicite was made of trust, then we wouldn't have this problem!" Connie huffed.

"Everything will be better in the morning." Doug promised. "We'll all go to the best breakfast in the world at the diner tomorrow."

Connie smiled softly, "... I don't think breakfast can fix this…"

"Eh, it's worth a shot." Doug grinned, nudging her.

* * *

The next morning, Jasper and Lapis were already fighting while they waited for breakfast.

"You told Connie?! Are you nuts?!" Jasper cried.

Lapis' eyes flashed in anger, "You're the insane one! You forced me to fuse!"

"I did it to stop Pearl-"

"That wasn't Pearl and if you could've just stopped being lazy and arrogant, maybe we would've done it better!"

"Oh, what? The slow way?!"

Connie and Doug watched with nervous faces. The waitress quickly served their plates and rushed away from the feud. Connie hestatly ate.

Jasper shoveled down food and Lapis picked at her food. Jasper glared at her, "You're not eating."

"So what?" Lapis snapped.

"You like eating!" Jasper growled.

"Quiet! You barely know me anymore!"

"I know you like the back of my hand! I know you've always been a whiny, scared brat who had so much power when fused but never wanted to use it!"

"You're obsessed!"

"STOP IT!" They turned to Connie who's eyes were burning with anger. She ran out of the dinner in sadness leaving Jasper and Lapis to look at each other.

Connie sat on a hill behind the diner when Lapis and Jasper ran to her.

"Kid, you okay?" Jasper asked.

Connie gave a laugh, "Am I okay? Am I okay?!" She snapped her head to them in anger, "No! No, I'm not okay! Home's been awful! Here's been awful! To be honest, I didn't even want to bring you until I thought you might make  
up! I don't understand!" She looked at the ground. "Is it- is it me?"

"What?... Connie, no… no, no, no, no!" Lapis whispered, "It's us!"

"... It's not your fault, kiddo." Jasper sighed. "I was just being stupid and angry."

"I don't think you're stupid!" Lapis blurted out, tears in her eyes. "I was angry enough to hurtle a rock at your face!"

Jasper smiled softly, "There it is."

"What?"

"The passion." Jasper answered, taking Lapis' hands and they started to walk in a slow dance. "The passion is the thing I like the most about you. Malicite would be nothing without it."

"More of the reason I should keep it hidden." Lapis sighed. She then glanced up with a look of curiousness, "Do… Do you think… we could make a peaceful Malicite? If I wasn't scared and you weren't angry and we were… happy as  
we are now?"

Jasper looked suprised but then grinned, "One way to find out." She twirled Lapis suddenly and dipped her. Connie gasped in suprise as Malicite appeared before her. The fusion didn't look evil, she looked confused. "Is…. Is  
this who I've been meant to be this whole time? I feel so right… I feel so…" She looked down at Connie and smiled softly, "Nice to see you again, kiddo… Like the real me?"

Connie stared up, dumbfounded.

Malicite laughed, "That's okay…." She then smiled softly, "If Jasper could forgive Lapis and Lapis forgive Jasper after all these years… and I'm here, who's to say she won't forgive Peridot?" She then vanished, leaving  
Lapis revealed to be hugging Jasper and Jasper looking shocked. Connie shook her head to get out of her trance and ran to them.

"I loved her." Was all Connie whispered.

Doug walked out and saw the happy scene. He tilted his head, "Well, well, ready to go home?"

"Ready." Lapis and Jasper said together. Connie grinned.

* * *

Connie opened the door and called out, "We're home!"

Peridot jumped in suprise and saw Jasper and Lapis next to each other. "Ah! You're home!"

Connie nodded, "... Malicite showed up too."

Peridot gave a squeal, "What?! Jasper, did you-!"

Lapis held her hand out to stop her, "She didn't."

Jasper walked stoically on and Peridot sputtered, wanting an explanation. "Not now." Jasper grunted. Lapis sat down beside Peridot and whispered, "She'll come around… she has to me."

* * *

 **I got a review saying I needed to be more original, so tell me what you think of this more original chapter!**


	64. Onion Friend

Connie made a ham and turkey sandwich for lunch and smiled, "Perfect…" She then tilted her head, "But it needs a healthy side!"

The temple door opened and Lapis walked out.

"Lapis! You want some lunch? I can make another sandwich." Connie said. Lapis shook her head. "Are… they still not talking to each other?"

"Yes." Lapis sighed, "I thought they would make up by now after Jasper saw how we could fuse into a stable Malicite, but… they haven't…"

Connie sighed when suddenly, the fridge slammed open. Little Onion leapt out of it and raced away. Connie saw a bag of veggies clenched in his hand and started to chase after him, leaving Lapis confused.

* * *

"Stop!" Connie cried. "How did you even get in my house?! You don't even eat!" She raced after the boy, her red baseball hat nearly fall b off her head, "Onion! Please!" The boy ran into a mysterious garage that  
was shielded by pink curtains. Connie ran in panting out, "Give me the veggies or I'll…" She saw the room was full of beautiful and strange paintings of… Lapis. Some had her sitting down while in some, she was flying in the air. One had  
her turned around with her gem showing as wings came out. There were so many… "This is really weird…" Connie whispered. The girl ran away to get Lapis.

* * *

"Dad always tells me that there is some crazy stalkers out there, and I think Onion might have a obsession with you." Connie whispered, showing Lapis the paintings. Lapis looked shocked but then, a woman with light blond hair stepped  
out holding a shotgun, "This is private property!"

"V-Vidalia?!" Lapis gasped, "Is that… really you?!"

"Lapis?!" The woman realized. Lapis gave an excited squeal and used her wings to propel into a hug, nearly knocking Vidalia over, both laughing.

"You've changed so much…" Lapis whispered. She then smirked, "Ha, ha, ha! You look old!"

"And you, you look the same…" Vidalia smiled and looked at Lapis, "grandma!"

Lapis giggled until she snorted.

"Wait, who are you?" Connie asked, running up to Vidalia. "Oh, well, we both kinda liked your dad, but then realized, all we needed was us!" Lapis grinned.

"Is that Connie?" Vidalia asked, looking at the girl, "Look at her! Spitting image of Doug! You shouldn't have any trouble when you grow up, just show that dazzling smile you both have, people will love you." Connie laughed  
and looked at the paintings, "Did you paint these when you used to hang out?"

Vidalia smiled in memory, "Yeah, some of them. Some are new, though. Lapis was my favorite model!" She winked at Lapis and the gem grinned, "Can you still make those beautiful water wings?"

Lapis went to the painting of her turned around and copied the image, twirling around and spouting her wings. "Of course!"

Vidalia laughed softly, "Oh, man... We used to get into all sorts of trouble, though Lapis probably looks seems like a mom to you, Connie, but look at this!" The woman fetched a photo that was nearby. Connie saw a young Vidalia and Lapis  
in the photos. They were making goofy faces and Lapis shaped into a man… Connie thought she may recognize him. "Aren't we just the spitting image of mischief?"

Lapis giggled and pointed to Vidalia's feet, "You're wearing slippers! You used to wear high heels!"

Vidalia took the photo back and laughed, "You don't know what I've done in these shoes!"

Lapis giggled and sighed, "I really missed you!"

"It's great to see you again... Sorry, it's been so long. I guess we've both been busy." Vidalia said.

Lapis nodded and put a arm around Connie, "Raising children does take up most of our time."

"What children? You have children, Vidalia?" Connie asked surprised. Onion suddenly ran in with scissors, making Connie think of all the times her father had told her not to run with them, and hugged Vidalia. The woman scooped up  
the boy and threw the scissors off to the side.

"You're…. Onion's mother?" Connie asked in horror. "Yep," Vidalia said, holding him as he stared at Connie. "he's my little troublemaker alright!" Vidalia turned to Connie with a smile, "I think he has a little  
crush on you, Connie. Adorable!"

Connie nodded numbly, not looking in the child's eyes. Onion suddenly murmured something into Vidalia's ear and she nodded, "That's a great idea!" She turned to her guests and smiled, "Lapis, Connie, Onion has invited you over  
to have dinner with us, what do you say?"

"That would be wonderful!" Lapis cried, overjoyed. Connie looked at her with worry and Lapis' smile faded, "Er… but… it's totally up to Connie, of course."

Connie saw how excited Lapis was, and how happy she had been in that picture… she needed this. "Of… Of course! Dinner would be great." The girl smiled weakly, still feeling Onion practically burning holes into her with his stare.

* * *

Connie fiddled with her fork while Lapis slurped up the last of her potato. She blushed in embarrassment and gave a tiny laugh, "Sorry, this is just so good."

Vidalia laughed, "It's just noodles and butter, but I'm glad you liked it, Laz." Lapis giggled at the nickname and then saw Sour Cream listening to music at the table, "It's been too long! I used to be taller than this guy!  
Look how big he's gotten!" She then glanced at Vidalia, "Any… help from his father?"

"That old fool?" Vidalia chuckled, "I don't think about him that much! It's just been me and Yellowtail for a while now."

Lapis gasped in surprise, "Yellowtail?"

"Yeah," Vidalia said, pointing to a picture of young Sour Cream and baby Onion. "things just kinda happened. Next thing you know, I'm living with a fisherman."

While Vidalia and Lapis chatted, Connie waved to Sour Cream, "Hi, Sour Cream."

Sour Cream merely made a motion with his hand, showing acknowledgment. Connie turned back to Onion to see him sculpting something in his mashed potatoes. When he stopped, he turned it to the girl and revealed it was shaped like Connie's face.

"Oh… heh, heh… cool?" Connie whispered nervously. Onion then disturbingly licked the back of it and chewed. Connie didn't hold back her disgusted face. Onion opened his mouth, letting the food spill out out onto the table. Connie  
wrinkled her nose and whispered, "Why do you hate food…"

Later, Vidalia watched in delight as the dishes practically washed themselves with Lapis' powers.

"What about you?" Vidalia asked. Lapis glanced at her, "Huh? What about me?"

"You haven't said a word about yourself all night." The woman answered.

Lapis smiled weakly, "Ha, my life is just…" She breathed in and made a fart noise, making Vidalia chuckle, "And the Temps?"

Lapis made the sound again, making Vidalia smirk.

"Er… Lapis?" Connie asked. Lapis turned, "Yes?"

"It's getting dark, we should be getting home…"

Lapis looked between Vidalia and Connie, and before she could speak, Onion pulled on his mother's leg, only saying, "Mama!"

Vidalia bent down and listened to him, "Oh! That's a great idea. Connie, Onion wants to show you around the house. What do you say? Can Onion show you around?"

"Uh…" Connie murmured. She glanced at Onion and the lights started flickering. The girl thought it was her imagination until Vidalia said, "Oh, whenever Sour Cream starts DJing, it uses all the electricity in the house. Good  
thing Yellowtail's not here. It drives him nuts."

"Vidalia, isn't it not safe to be in a house like this?" Lapis asked, concerned.

Vidalia shrugged, "Nah. Kids gotta express themselves, right?"

Onion suddenly slammed his hands onto the sculpture of Connie's head, making it splatter everywhere.

Vidalia laughed, "You too, Onion. Very expressive." She looked at Connie who had her teeth clenched, "Looks like he's ready for you, Connie."

Onion stared at Connie and slightly smiled. Connie's reflexes reached for the sword that wasn't there.

* * *

Connie stood awkwardly in Onion's room. She was silent and rubbed her arm, her hair falling in her face, rather shy and a bit frightened. Onion ran past her and bounced onto his little trampoline, onto the bed. Connie watched with her eyebrow arched.  
Suddenly, a little mouse ran across her shoe. Happily to have a distraction, Connie bent down, gently petting it with her finger. Onion suddenly leapt off the bed and ran over. He snatched the mouse away from Connie. She watched him walk up to a big  
cage and frowned while she followed, "That's a awfully big cage for a little-" He opened the container and Connie gasped, "SNAKE!" She fell back and Onion looked at her exspectingly. Connie rose and looked at the cage, "You  
want me to find that little mouse… to that snake?"

Onion nodded, pressing the mouse into her hand. Connie looked down at the trembling thing, "... I… I mean, we all have to eat, so… so…" Connie gave a moan, "I'm sorry! I can't!" She shoved it back to Onion and turned away  
as he dangled it above his snake. "No innocent thing should be killed without a proper…" Connie heard the thing squeaking and then the loud clamp of the cage being shut. She gulped and dryly whispered, "... trial…"

Onion ignored her and walked over to his TV, putting a VHS tape in. Connie walked over and said, "Oh! You're putting on a movie? I like movies." She settled herself cross legged and watched.

"A hospital setting? Cool. I've always thought I'd might make a pretty good nurse, when I'm not saving the world…" Connie cocked her head, "Wait… Your mom isn't a actress, right?"

"Okay, I'm ready." Vidalia said on the tape, "I'm ready!"

"What's she getting ready for?" Connie murrmred, "Is this a surgery?"

Vidalia gave a moan. "Ohhh, oh, Yellowtail... I think…" She moaned louder, "It's happening!"

"Wait a second… I recognize…. Ugh! No! I already talked about this with Peri! Not again!" Connie cried, blushing hard and covering her eyes. "I don't want to see you born!"

Onion stopped the tape and leapt onto his bed. He peeled back a poster and Connie saw a secret passage, "Whoa… What's in there?" The girl was about to approach him when the lights flickered, and he motioned to her making a scary  
face. Connie flashed back to the time he had twisted her hand and his terrifying face… She slowly backed away.

Connie ran down the steps, "Lapis! Please, please can we go-" She paused when she heard Lapis whisper, "But they still won't talk to each other and… I still keep having nightmares about the old Malachite… even when she's gone  
for good." Lapis glanced up at Vidalia who was sipping tea, "I'm so… angry and sad and scared, all at the same time."

"I know what you mean." Vidalia sighed.

"You do?"

"Listen, Laz, we don't always get along in this family. Yellowtail and Sour Cream are always at each other's throats. It makes me nuts. Actually, when I get like that, I think about you! And how you could always just make a goofy noise, smile,  
and just deal with it." The woman smiled.

"You're describing yourself." Lapis smiled weakly back, "You were so amazing… I looked like a baby compared you. I was just a dumb sponge following you around."

"But you were always optimistic and happy, even when you've gone through such horrible things! You know how much I wanted to be like you?" Vidalia sighed softly, "I still think about it. To be honest, that's why I started painting  
you again. I'm... I'm inspired by you, Lapis Lazuli."

Lapis blushed.

"And, if anything, I was the sponge, water girl." Vidialia joked. Lapis laughed and Vidalia sighed, "I'm out of tea, would you help me make some more?"

"Of course!" Lapis said, flying up. "I'm happy Connie doesn't feel too awkward here, or I would just have to go home." They went to the kitchen and Connie sighed. She crept back up and into Onion's room. "Whatever  
you have planned for me, I'm going to face it." Connie growled.

Onion didn't say anything, merely crawling into the passage. Connie ran up to the wall, looked around, and hoisted herself in.

The passage was a airvent that Connie felt quite constrained in. Onion was ahead of her with incredible speed and she called after him, trying to catch up. It gradually got darker and Connie called out, "W-What's going on?" Onion  
suddenly turned on a light and Connie saw a small room with only a chest in the center. "What is this place?" Connie whispered. She suddenly fell out of the vent and hit the ground hard. The girl watched Onion go to open the chest and frowned,  
"I… There better not be a corrupted gem or something in there!"

He opened it to reveal capsules of both G.U.Y.S and G.A.L.S. Connie walked up and cocked her head, "Oh! It's the little figures. You must be a collector!" She smiled and said, "Did you know Steven loves these things? So did  
my Dad when he was my age." Onion gave her a capsule with a blond girl in it and she smiled, "Oh! Theis is one of the female versions, to go against the boy stereotype in the 80s, they were discontinued though. I read up about them after  
you-" She tried to give it back but Onion shook his head, pushing it to her. "You're… giving this to me?" The boy nodded.

"Oh! Well, thank you!" Connie smiled. "I'm sure Steven will flip when he sees this!"

Onion picked up a empty looking capsule and Connie frowned, "... Are you trying to show me something or…."

* * *

Lapis and Connie were leaving that night and stood outside the doorway.

"And stay out!" Vidalia laughed.

Lapis blushed, "What? But-"

"I'm joking, Laz." Vidalia winked, "You Temps take things a little to serious sometimes!"

"Oh." Lapis giggled, "Well, in that case, thanks for letting us break into your house, eat your food and… spill my feelings on you."

"Anytime!" Vidalia smiled. "And it will get better. You're a rock! …. Right?"

"Heh, kinda." Lapis smirked.

"Well, whatever you are, Laz, don't be a stranger."

"I won't. Just tell me whenever you need, 'inspiration'." Lapis said, "or, you could come to the temple sometime, Connie could even babysit Onion for you."

"Oh, well, that sounds great to us." The mother said, glancing at Onion,"What about you, Connie? Ready for another round with this guy?"

Connie smiled at the boy. He opened his mouth to reveal the mouse from before. It squeaked and leapt out. Connie gave a nervous laugh, ".. We'll see!"

Lapis murmured softly to Connie, "I'm a bit worried about him..." 


	65. Historical Friction

Connie practiced her sword techniques in the beach in front of her mailbox as she gave a yell, slamming into Steven's practice shield. Peridot had forgotten about training, trying too hard to find Pearl. Steven slid behind Connie suddenly and tossed  
his shield like a boomerang. Connie snapped around and swung her sword, making the shield change it's target. They heard the metal clang against the wall and heard a scared gasp. They turned to see the mailman shaking.

"Oh! Sorry, Jamie! I didn't see you there!" Connie apologized, running up and getting the shield. Steven walked up and took it. He glanced at Jamie, "What's up, Mr. Postman?"

"Steven, Connie, look!" Jamie made a fanfare and gave Connie a flyer that said, 'The Tale of William Dewey"

"A play!" Connie gasped while Steven's eyes turned to stars.

"I'm holding auditions tonight. It's a local production drifting through space, looking for stars." Jamie said, gave a gesture.

Steven grinned and said in an Italian accent, "If'a ya' need a great actor, you'a come to the right'a guyyyyyya."

Jamie and Connie were silent until Jamie gave a small cough, "What was that?"

"An accent!" Steven said as if it was clear.

"From where?" Connie asked beside him. Steven looked at her and then at Jamie, "Huh. I don't really know." After a pause, Jamie and Steven high fived, saying, "Acting!" Connie gave a tiny smile, "... Acting?"

* * *

That night, Steven and Connie had gone to the auditions together, both living close to the stage.

"Jamie! Jamie!" Steven cried, running to him while Connie waved behind the boy, "Where is everyone else?"

"Uh, you're the only two that showed up. But, hey, some plays only have one person in them, so we're already in three hundred percent better shape than that." Jamie said shyly.

Connie frowned, "Er… sure?"

"Seems legit to me!" Steven said.

Jamie handed them both scripts, Connie trying to hesitate, but he interrupted, "Great! Here's a copy of the script."

"Beach City or Bust: The Tale of William Dewey"." Connie read.

"This is my first production, so it needs to be exciting! It needs to be classic!" The teen then sighed, "It needs to be fully funded by Mayor Dewey. And it is... because he wrote it."

Connie opened the little book and saw it was indeed written by Mayor Dewey. "Oh… "

"What's it about?" Steven asked.

"I'm glad you asked!" A voice suddenly said. They turned to see Mayor Dewey walking on the stage. "This is the story of how Beach City was founded nearly two hundred years ago by my great-great-great-great-grandfather, William Dewey.  
It's a truly important historical tale with a lot of sentimental and political importance to me."

"Well, we're just about to get started, uh... Would you like to sit in on the rehearsal, Mayor?" Jamie asked.

"Don't mind if I do!" Mayor Dewey said, sitting down.

"OK, Connie, Steven, since you're the only ones who showed up, you'll be playing the lead roles of William Dewey and his first mate, Buddy." Jamie explained.

Connie blushed, "Er, I'm not really acting, I came here to support Steven and ask if I can work on set and lighting…"

Jamie gave a cry suddenly, clutching his heart. He fell to his knees and grasped Connie's hand, "N-No! This is my first play, I… I need all the actors I can get! Please, my good lady! Please! Help me achieve my dreams!"

"But-" Connie started.

Steven interrupted, "Please, Connie? You don't want to disappoint Jamie, right? Besides, this'll be fun!"

Connie looked at Steven then at a desperate Jamie. "I… suppose… But why do I have to play William Dewey?"

"Because, you are talented and you do not do strange accents!" Jamie cried, leaping right back to his normal state. "It is decided! Now, as for other roles I guess I'll have to play... all of them." Jamie cleared his throat,  
starting to read the script, "The ship is out at sea. The sun beats down on the crew while they stand on deck. Suddenly, the tall, ruggedly handsome man standing in front of them speaks,"

"Crew," Connie started weakly, "I'm so glad you could be part of this journey with me as we search for a new land to build a distinguished, new city in!"

Steven nodded, "Oh, Captain William Dewey, you are such a good captain! Never has a voyage been so super good!"

"Good point, First Mate Buddy!" Connie said.

"Woo-hoo for fun!" Jamie called as multiple people of the crowd.

Steven read that they were now in a lighting storm, "Oh no! Is that a wild squall approaching us? Surely this can't be good!"

"Be calm, my crew! I'll just save us with my heroic, supernatural ability!" Connie cried. She then read off the script directions, "And then William Dewey grows to a fifty-foot giant… and carries the boat safely to shore. The crew thinks he's  
so good at being captain that they elected him to be the first mayor of Beach City… Hold on, what is this?! It isn't even possible!"

"Wow, Mayor Dewey, that was really good!" Steven said.

"William Dewey is a really, ah... "good" character, but maybe we could bring out another side of William Dewey? See his struggles?" Jamie whispered. Connie nodded.

"The great William Dewey didn't struggle! He was good at everything on the first try! Just like me when I wrote this play! Not a single word needs to be changed!" The Mayor said.

"But-" Connie started when the man shushed her, "Now, now! Don't you two forget who's funding this!" He stood up and laughed, "Well, good hustle, Connie, Jamie, carwash boy, keep it up!" He left and Connie sighed.

"This is going to be a disaster." Jamie whispered.

"I know." Connie sighed.

"What do you guys mean?" Steven asked. Connie gave a moan, dropping the script to the ground, "This story is just terrible, Steven! Literally anything I've ever read is better than this…"

"William Dewey is completely unbelievable!" Jamie added.

Steven glanced between them, "Is it because he turns into a giant?"

"No! He's got no character!" Jamie cried.

"But the script kept saying he was really good!" Steven whispered.

"Steven, even who seems like the purest, most good person must have faults deep down, that's what makes a hero, their struggles." Connie explained.

"My first play," Jamie sighed, "and probably my last…"

* * *

Connie walked in, sad and feeling for Jamie. Peridot looked up from wiring something and cocked her head, "What's up with you?

Connie went up to the couch and sat down, "William Dewey is so uninteresting! He has no character at all!"

Peridot frowned, "You mean, Dewey the Dunce?"

Connie glanced up, "Er… maybe? Steven asked me to join a play about Beach City's founding, but the lead I'm playing is just… boring! He's perfect, no mistakes or flaws."

"Heh… I used to be that way." Peridot sighed, "Until I made the one mistake that ruined my record!"

Connie bit her lip and whispered, "That's okay… Everyone makes mistakes. It's not strength if you just sit in the hole you made yourself, it's strength when you can climb out of it."

The gem looked at the girl with a small smile, "Sometimes… you're even smarter than me." She took the script and read it over, "Ugh, what even is this? It's so inaccurate and… cloddy and bad! Who wrote this play?"

"The mayor." Shrugged Connie.

"Well the mayor wasn't even there." Peridot huffed. "I mean, I was."

"Wait! You're a first person source on this! What really happened?" Connie asked excitedly.

Peridot smirked, "Well, he practically drolled over Lazuli for one, and he didn't even deserve her!"

* * *

Jamie had clutched this new script in his hands while Steven and Connie waited for his response, "Connie… This is so real! It was like it was written by someone who was really there!"

"It was." Connie smiled.

"I added the jokes this morning!" Steven added proudly.

"So I see. It's so gritty, so passionate, so…" Jamie was interrupted by Connie, "Historically accurate?" Was

"And the drama! This is the play we should be doing."

"Let's do it then!" Connie cried.

"But how?" Jamie asked. "My roles have now doubled, we need new costumes, and the mayor will have our heads!"

"Jamie, a true hero struggles, remember?" Connie smiled.

Jamie glanced at the two children then at the script, "By Jiminy, you're right! This show will go on tomorrow night! With Connie as Captain William Dewey, you as Buddy, and I as the remaining roles!"

"All of them!?" Connie gasped.

Jamie inhaled and pumped his fist, "All of them!"

* * *

That night, Connie, Steven, and Jamie stood backstage as Doug, Jasper, Peridot, and Lapis sat in the audience. Jasper was asleep while Peridot read a brochure and Lapis casually blew hair out of her face next to a beaming Doug. The mayor  
walked up suddenly and went to the seat next to Lapis, "Ahem, do you mind if I take a seat?"

Lapis looked at the seat, then at the man, "Er… yes, yes I do."

"But why?" Dewey sputtered.

"Because someone's already sitting there." Lapis muttered. She made a water clone of a human and glanced up at the mayor. "I'm not interested, thank you." Said both she and the water. The mayor gave a dry horrified noise  
and went to sit far away from her. Lapis smiled.

Backstage, Connie, Steven, and Jamie sat talking hushed.

"I hope I don't secretly have stage fright…" Connie murmured. Steven grabbed her hand reassuringly and smiled, "You'll do great!"

Jamie was breathing hard and Connie glanced at him, "Nervous too?"

"Very. This could make or break my career!" Jamie cried.

"You'll be fired?" Connie gasped, "Don't worry, I've been reading up on cheap apartments to rent near Beach City, I'll find you a new job somehow.-"

"Oh, well, no, it could make or break my hobby then." Jamie murmured. They each put a hand in and whispered, "Acting…"

Soon, the spotlights went onto the curtains as Jamie said, "Boardies and gentle-boardies, I am thrilled to present to you... The Tale of William Dewey!" The audience cheered. The curtains opened revealing Connie and Steven on a  
fake boat.

"Oh Captain, my Captain, how long until the soft lips of our sailing ship kiss the rugged beard of new lands?" Steven asked as First Mate Buddy.

"I know we've been journeying for many months, but surely we'll run into something soon, something amazing! The ocean can't be that big, right?" Connie continued

There was sudden yells from the crowd:

"That's my girl!" Jasper yelled.

"Connie! It's us!" Peridot called.

Lapis held a camera and smiled, "I'm so filming this!"

Connie blushed. "Back home, they called me Dewey the Dunce! Said I couldn't find land even if I was standing on it!"

The audience laughed.

"What the-" The mayor started.

"And I'm starting to fear that they were right…" Connie sighed.

"What light through yon stage left breaks?" Steven cried, pointing.

"What is it?" Connie asked, turning.

Jamie called from off stage, "It is the east, silly human, and we are the Crystal Temps!"

"What!? This wasn't in the script! This wasn't in the budget either!" Dewey cried, taking out his calculator.

Jamie lowered onto the stage by a rope in front of the children, wearing sunglasses and a party hat on his nose. "Greetings! I am the great Peridot! And I come to you as a messenger of the brilliant, wonderful, amazing, Yellow Diamond!"

The real Peridot frowned, "Hey! I had two pages more of descriptive words! They skipped it!"

"Listen, human, turn your ship around! The land you're headed for is full of pain and doom and despair for your kind so, go, or I'll call the others!"

"Nonsense! I won't take orders from the likes of you!" Connie cried while she felt Peridot staring at her, clearly mad about the cheaply-made costume her character had.

"Hmm!" Jamie bent down and tied a feather duster on his head and put a stick-on gem on his nose. "You guys better turn around before I make you!" He said roughly.

Jasper frowned. "Is that me?"

Jamie bent down again and held up a water bottle with taped on wings, "Yeah! I'll push you right back if you don't yourselves!"

"I'll just return home like the failure dunce I am… Never to be as great or amazing as the Crystal Temps." Connie sighed. She turned and tipped over the sail and mast of the ship, "Ah! I can't even turn a sail right! Why must I always  
struggle!?"

The audience laughed again as the curtain went down. Buck turned to his father, "Wow, dad...what a loser."

The curtain rose again. Connie and Steven were both on one leg, tipping from side to side with a dark background behind them, pretending to be in a storm.

"Oh, Captain, Captain! We've drifted miles from our course! These waves are nothing like I've ever seen before!" Steven cried.

"Nonsense! This is only a drizzle! How could it get worse?" Connie said as William Dewey.

Jamie popped up behind them and dumped a bucket of water over her. "... Yep… more than a drizzle, definitely got worse."

A roar suddenly was heard and the actor gasped, "What's that portside!? …"

Jamie suddenly leapt out wearing a purple tentacle costume. The crowd gasped as he grabbed Steven by his waist from behind him. Steven gave a cry, kicking, "Captain! It's got me!"

"First Mate Buddy!" Connie cried, reaching for Steven.

"Whatever you do," Steven fake struggled, "don't give up your search! You're the bravest man I know because you try, perhaps even braver then that amazing gem that we encountered! …. Oh, who am I kidding..."

Peridot smiled and the others glanced at her with disbelief. "Eh, it's what he said himself!"

"Buddy! Nooo!" Connie yelled, pretending to cry. Jamie went behind the ship with Steven. The boy snuck off.

Connie took off her hat, "Oh, Buddy! A stale biscuit 'til the end!" A silhouette of a big monster appeared behind her. Jamie appeared as the tentacle and a cardboard one appeared beside him.

"Ah, I am doomed. Dewey, the Disastrous Dunce…" Connie sighed. A noise was heard, "What's this?"

Another silhouette appeared next to the monster, resembling a gem fusion, and the fight began, Jamie fighting nothing. Connie pretend to be shocked.

"Oh my! The monster has simply vanished in yellow light! Whoever this savior is, must be told in the legends!" Connie whispered. Jamie ran off as the monster disappeared. Connie looked up at the fusion that drew close, "Oh no! It's  
coming! Oh, please, powerful goddess of power, don't hurt me." A giant cardboard hand pushed the prop boat and the background changed, the wave pulling off and a beach coming on.

"Ha! Ha! I've made it!" Connie cried, laughing like Peridot. She leapt out of the boat. She fell to her knees, "Land! Sweet, solid land!" She kissed the floor boards then made a disgusted noise. He got up and held his  
hand to his heart, looking up at the fusion shadow, "Thank you, giant woman."

Jamie's voice came over and said in a harsh voice, "You, human man, this land is dangerous.  
I order you to leave!"

"No! I will stay! For I am William Dewey, and I don't give up in the face of failure!" Connie cried.

"Alright then. But I won't promise you we won't bring… danger to this place. I'm sorry." The fusion vanished and the young actress looked around at the stage. "I shall name this place after my dead first mate Buddy…"

Suddenly, Steven rolled in on a prop wave and cried out in his accent, "I'm a' baccck!"

"Beach City it is!" Connie cried. A banner unfurled behind her that said 'Dewey for Mayor' The people cheered and clapped while the mayor sweated. "... What?" He realized they were applauding him and smiled.

"Nice to know great-grandpa was a real person with flaws. Gutsy move, Dad." Buck said next to him.

Later, Jamie wore his sunglasses as he signed autographs with Connie and Steven by his side, "One for you... And one for you."

The mayor walked up to them, "Excuse me. If I could have a moment with the talent?"

The people left. The mayor put his arm around the teen, "Jamie! Oh, yeah! Fantastic work! I love the message. Vote Mayor Dewey! How about I offer you another role? Lead Director of Beach City Community Theater. You could put on more plays,  
as long as the budget allows it!" Jamie had fire in his eyes and made an excited noise. He straightened up, "Thank you sir."

Connie smiled, "Peridot helped a lot!"

Peridot walked up with a smile as Connie's family was behind, "Yes. I did it all. You can praise me now."

Dewey blushed and laughed nervously, "I suppose you three do protect us, even me from shame. You know, I believe that William Dewey even had a crush on one of you!" The mayor laughed nervously.

"I know." Lapis smiled. "You remind me of him, what's 200 years between friends?"

"Weeell, I must be off then to bask in the adulation of my constituents." Dewey said. He left. Lapis smiled, "He's gotta move on."

"That campaign slogan ruined my excellent writing!"

"Art doesn't always need a reason, Peri." Connie said, "Sometimes, you just gotta make the audience happy! That's why you always end on a joke!" There was an awkward silence. Jasper suddenly laughed, slapping her knee, "I  
get it! That's hilarious!"

* * *

 **The reason both Steven and Connie are in the play is I really don't believe Connie would be comfortable being on stage, the center of attention. In this, I feel if Steven didn't convince her, she probably wouldn't go.**


	66. Friend Ship

Pearl was at the Galaxy Warp, picking up pieces of the broken warp to Homeworld. "Urgh. Why is this always broken?! And the Hub's down too. Urgh! Stupid Crystal Twerps! They ruin everything!" She released the pile. "Perhaps, if I  
get Yellow Diamond or 'Connie' as they call her, Rose will-" A warp pad nearby glowed, revealing Connie and the Temps.

"I win! I did it! Ha, ha!" Peridot squealed. Connie took out her sword and threateningly said, "You're not getting away this time."

"Good. You came right to me." Pearl whispered, eyeing Connie's gem. "How did you find me anyway?"

"Why would we tell you?" Connie growled. "You'll never escape us! No matter what you do!"

"Pearl, we're gonna-" Jasper started.

Peridot pointed her pole and cried out, "Prepare to die!"

Pearl gave a huff and turned, crossing her arms, "Yellow Diamond, surrender yourself, before I get too bored with your servants."

Connie gave a growl, gripping her sword harder, "They're not my-"

"NEVER!" Peridot screamed. Pearl groaned, "I do not have time for this!" She whipped herself around, her dual blades sliding against each other. "Listen here, your planet will die and I'm not sticking around to find  
out when!" Her gem glowed and eight holograms of herself appeared. They all ran for the other gems. Connie gave a grunt, swinging out her own blade and blocked the eight.

Pearl turned to Peridot with a small smile. Peridot gave a growl, "I'm going to get you, you Crystal clod!" Her pole floated up and shaped into a hammer. Pearl quickly leapt over the hammer and with swiftness slid behind Peri and had  
her blades crossed to the small gem's neck. "You were saying?" Peal chuckled.

Connie gave a gasp and turned to Jasper, "Cover for me. I can't let her sacrifice herself for us!" Connie slid out from under the holograms. Jasper grabbed all the blades with one large clap. Connie ran at Pearl who dropped a blade,  
one still at Peridot's neck. The gem grabbed Connie's wrist and growled, "You're coming with me!" Connie looked at her hands, seeing a yellow glow. Her powers! She attempted to slam a hand on Pearl when the gem put the sword closer to Peridot's  
neck, "Oh no you don't!" Pearl said in a singsong voice. She sliced and Connie gave a scream in horror. The tall gem put the point to Peridot's  
gem, "Your choice, Yellow Diamond."

"Connie! Listen! She's faking it!" Lapis cried, but the glow was already gone from Connie's hands.

Pearl smirked and kicked Peri's gem away. Connie gave cry but Pearl pulled her along.

Lapis gave a war cry and used the water to shove Pearl away from Connie.

Pearl struggled against the water but then expertly twirled her sword in her fingers to point straight at Lapis. Lapis gave a gasp, and a water clone of Pearl protected her. The clone ran at Pearl. They had a small bout until Pearl destroyed it.  
Lapis gave a growl until she heard a yell from Jasper, "Lapis! I need some help!" Lapis turned to see the holos had multiplied. Lapis flew to her aid. Connie ran to Peridot's gem, holding it close. She gently placed the gem back on the ground.

Pearl leapt on a warp pad, trying to make it warp her away, but it was busted, like the others. She gave a squawk in annoyance, "Does anything on this pathetic planet work?!"

"You… LIED TO ME!" Connie screamed, leaping to Pearl. They spared while Jasper and Lapis finally destroyed all the clones. Connie tried to jab at Pearl but the gem suddenly held the blade between her hands. She smirked and threw Connie  
upward, high into the air. The girl screamed out in fear as the ground grew closer.

"CONNIE!" Her teammates cried. Lapis tried to fly up but found herself surrounded by Holo Pearls once more. Jasper ran to Pearl who was trying to escape in the distraction. Peridot reformed in the chaos.

"Connie?!" She gasped.

"Peridot! Save Connie!" Jasper yelled.

Peridot eyed Pearl and ran at her, "No! I've been too useless already! I'm getting that Pearl, this will be my glory!"

"GUYS!" Connie cried, still falling.

Jasper ran at Pearl from one direction, and Peridot from the other. They slammed into each other, and fell in a heap. Lapis suddenly flew in and scooped Connie up, inches from her doom.

Pearl gave a small laugh, "Oh! You two are so pathetic! You can't even keep your teammate safe because of your fighting! Hm. At least Garnet, Amethyst and I trust each other!"

Connie breathed hard while Lapis glared at the two, holding her girl like she would never let her go.

Pearl pointed a sword at Connie, "The tables have turned, haven't they? You'll now find you can never escape me! I won't rest until I get you and get you to my lady!" She warped away, her words echoing in the gems' ears.

* * *

The Temps warped into the beach house.

"What was that?!" Jasper yelled at Peridot.

Peridot blushed, "So Connie almost died, it's not like that doesn't happen every day!"

Connie nodded, "I gotta agree with her on that."

Lapis flew over to the couch and sat with her back turned to them, "... She won't rest until she has Connie, did you guys even hear that? Why does Pearl's master want her so badly?"

Peridot gave a small sigh, "Oh, I don't know, maybe because she was the rebellious leader of Homeworld in her past life?!"

Connie winced.

Jasper gave a growl, "Just shut up! I don't want to know. Whatever it is, she's not taking our Connie away."

Peridot gave a small smile, looking at Pearl's escape pod attached to the warp pad, "My tracking worked exactly as it needed to! Now I can track that Pearl down and bubble her for good! Then, everything will go back to normal!"  
Peridot grinned at Jasper who looked away.

Suddenly, the pod started to light up and the Temps turned to it. "She's using the warps now!" Peridot stuck her arm into the programming and her eyes looked coded. A globe projected out of her gem, showing a blinking dot. "There  
she is! Oh ho, still trying to escape! It's useless!" The small gem cackled, walking to the warp pad. Jasper slowly joined her.

Connie was about to go along but turned to Lapis, "What's wrong?"

Lapis blew a bang out her hair face and whispered, "She's so arrogant sometimes… Thinking this will all leave if she catches Pearl." The gem flew to the warp pad and Connie stood in thought until Jasper startled her, "Kid! Get your  
butt over here!"

* * *

The Temps warped in to see an ancient spaceship. Connie gasped, "Wow…"

"Ba ha ha ha! That clod is as dull as dirt!" Peridot smirked. Connie turned to her, "What is this place?"

"It's a ship, Connie!" Peridot cried, "Homeworld gems used to travel here to Earth in these before the warps were made. But now they're utter garbage. A pearl can't even fly a ship! Now let's shatter her!" Peridot cried,  
running to the ship entrance.

Connie frowned and ran after her, "We're bubbling Pearl, not shattering her, you know that, don't you?"

Peridot only nodded and walked in, the rest not far behind. The ship was overgrown with life. Green, dry vines and sticks clung to its walls and it was rusted over.

"Yikes. Earth sure beat this ship up, huh." Jasper murmured to no one in particular.

Suddenly, a diamond in the center of the room glowed. The Temps gasped and the diamond projected a screen with Pearl smirking at them on it, "You actually fell for it! This is the oldest trick in the book! Hm, you would think a Diamond would  
order her most competent soldiers to rebel."

"Heh! You fell for this, you muddy clod! You can't even fly this garbage!" Peridot laughed. Her words echoed and there was silence. Pearl raised an eyebrow and gave a teal blush, "Well, this is just embarrassing, but I believe the  
microphone's a bit covered, just, repeat what you said."

Connie uncovered a diamond shaped microphone and spoke into it, "Well, to give a brief  
summary, Peridot called you a clod and said you can't fly this ship, she thinks it's garbage."

Pearl gave a laugh and smiled coyly, "Well, Yellow Diamond, or whoever you claim to be, know you won't be trapped in that garbage for long, as for your friends…" Pearl smirked, "They'll just have to regret for years walking  
their leader right into a trap!" The Temps heard the door slam shut behind them and turned to it with gasps of surprise. Pearl smirked, "Ah, finally I can have some peace and quiet without you three around, and with Connie in my custody,  
I will return to Homeworld. I have you right where I want you."

"No…" Peridot whispered. She ran to the door and started pounding frantically, "No, no, no! This can't be happening!"

"Ugh, why do you let that Peridot yammer away? It's very annoying and very disruptive." Pearl growled. She sighed in frustration and then glanced at the buttons below her, "Now, to complete my orders, shatter the lackeys and  
get Yellow Diamond." She slammed her finger on a button and they flinched. The Temps realized nothing happened and Connie glanced up at Pearl, "Was that supposed to-"

"Quiet!" Pearl snapped. She pressed another button and it activated the ship's lasers which extended to point at Connie and the Temps. "See? I know what I'm doing!" Pearl said pridefully. Connie deflected them with her sword,  
slashing, blocking and spinning. Lapis saw her growing tired, as were Jasper and Peridot, shielding with their metal and helmet.

"Everyone, get around me!" Lapis cried. The others ran to her and she made a water shield around them, freezing it. Connie collapsed to the ground, panting and sweating.

"Connie, are you alright?" Lapis asked, bending down to the girl. The ice suddenly cracked and then shattered loudly. Connie gave a gasp and started defecting again. Jasper suddenly saw a way out of the room. "Guys! Come on!"  
She called. Connie nearly tripped over but followed the others.

They panted for air and Connie put her sword away. "I… I think it's over."

Suddenly, spikes shot up right next to her. Lapis flew over, carrying Peridot while Jasper picked up Connie and had the girl ride her back like she was a protective mother bear. They weaved between the spikes and finally got to the end. They  
saw Pearl standing in front of them and Peridot ripped away from Lapis, "YOU! DIE, DIE, DIE, you clod!" Peridot screeched, making her pole turn into various weapons, trying to poof a mere hologram.

"Wow." Pearl laughed as the gem was nearly crying in anger, "Honestly, how long are you going to keep at that?"

Jasper grabbed Peridot's arm roughly, "HEY! Stop it!"

"Let me go, you clod!" Peridot protested, struggling in her grip.

Jasper sighed, "It's not even doing anything."

Peridot gave a growl and whispered, "How did someone who used to be so great and mighty, lead her team straight into a cloddy Pearl's trap? For once, our problem is my…" suddenly, the hologram disappeared, "fault?" The floor  
collapsed under the Temps and they fell. Lapis, in her shocked state, only thought to make her wings too late, for she was only able to catch Connie mid fall.

"I got you!" Lapis cried. She breathed a sigh in relief, "I got you…"

They glanced down and saw Peridot and Jasper had fallen into a small room.

"Oh no. Are you two alright?" Connie called.

Jasper looked up with a weary smile, "A-ok kiddo! Don't worry about us-" The floor then slammed shut.

"Well, that's just great." Lapis muttered.

She flew Connie to the ground. They landed gently and saw a screen showing Jasper and Peridot pounding on the walls.

"We have to get them out!" Connie cried. Jasper started pounding with her helmet and Peridot inhaled. She gave a growl of effort and the walls started to go outward. Peridot kept pushing and pushing, but soon, she realized the room  
would not break. "Lapis! Are you listening to me?!" Connie cried.

"I… didn't mean to upset you, or offend you, or whatever I did to make you so angry with me!" Peridot exhaled, falling to the floor.

Lapis paused and squinted, "Wait…"

Peridot blushed, sweating, "I thought things would go differently. I thought I could catch Pearl-"

"We're getting out of here, you know that." Jasper groaned, pushing harder.

Peridot huffed, pushing again, this time upward. "I mean it, Jasper. I thought catching that squawking nuisance might make things go back to normal, I wanted you to like me again…"

Jasper glanced at Peridot, "Are you serious right now? You know how much fusion means to me after Malicite. You know how I feel about my strength."

Lapis and Connie looked at each other with weak smiles.

"They're talking, and listening to one another…" Lapos murmured.

Connie nodded, "Maybe they can work this out, on their own."

Suddenly, gears at the top of the room started turning. The gems watched in horror as the room started to close in on the two. Lapis gasped in shock, "They won't be able to if they get crushed!"

Jasper and Peridot pushed hard on the walls.

"Just tell me what I can do to make this all go away!" Peridot cried.

Jasper gave a strained grunt, "It's finally your turn to learn what Lapis and I already have: no matter what you do or how hard you try, somethings will never go away! People will still remember, it's your duty to make efforts to prove  
you've changed!"

Peridot paused pushing, "But it has to go away-"

"It never will!"

"No, it has to-"

"It won't!"

They were silent for a moment, only the sliding walls making noise.

"I couldn't help myself..." Peridot whispered.

Jasper sighed, "Yeah, you could."

The small gem frowned, "Wha… I just wanted to feel strong again! Is that so hard to believe? I needed to fuse ag-"

The walls suddenly stopped as Lapis rusted the gears.

Jasper gave a grunt and looked up at Peridot, her eyes shadowy in anger, "Don't ever say that, do you hear me? Never say you needed to fuse unless you truly did."

"Sorry. I just… wish I could be as strong as you, I like feeling powerful and with you, I can if we fuse…" Peridot frowned, "... If we can't make up, then how could Lapis want to fuse with you that morning?"

Jasper smirked sadly, "You make it sound so simple… That took years and years of silence, anger, and fear. I was hiding nearby when Lapis told Connie about Malachite's past, only then I saw how it really, really hurt her. The only way  
we were able to make up was when Connie's own self worth was in danger…"

Lapis sighed softly, glancing at Connie who was in her own thoughts.

"So, can you promise me, prove that you won't use fusion for your own interests?" Jasper whispered, sitting with her legs against a wall.

Peridot nodded with earnestness, "Yes. Yes, I promise."

"Then…" Jasper muttered softly, "Let's get out of here."

"Oh my stars! Are you ok with that?" Peridot asked in disbelief.

Jasper shrugged, "Yeah, sure. But first, let me tell you something."

Peridot cocked her head.

"Peri, you're strong, really strong. Maybe not physically, but you can be so bold and brave, and smart, you have always protected the Earth, even with Yellow Diamond not here to tell you to. I envy you big time."

"R-Really?" Peridot sniffed.

Jasper frowned, "Okay, reign it i-"

Peridot hugged Jasper around the waist, "Thank you." The small gem coughed.

Outside, Lapis and Connie were at a loss, not knowing what to do. Suddenly, the room slammed open and Andalusite molded the metal left over into a tiny marble compared to her. She gave a smile and crossed her arms. She disappeared with Jasper  
and Peridot in her place.

* * *

Pearl held her trembling together, staring at the numerous buttons.

"Oh, where are they? I… I don't know how to find them! Why can't Garnet be here? I'm stuck, I don't know what to do…" Pearl whispered, away from the Crystal Temps, finally able to release her anxiety. "I should just try to  
call Homeworld again, Rose'll tell me what to do and I'll-"

The wall suddenly blasted open behind her and the Crystal Temps were there, Connie pointing her sword at Pearl.

"Nowhere to run now!" Jasper smirked.

"Surrender!" Connie growled forcefully.

Pearl stuttered and almost looked like she wanted to obey her, then her usual smugness appeared, "Ha! Do you think I'll give up that easily?"

Connie ran at her, sword unsheathed. Pearl leapt up and scaled the wall. The hybrid threw her sword at the woman but only the handle managed to hook her foot. Pearl struggled slightly, and almost fell. Connie grabbed her leg and hung on,  
"Got you!"

Lapis flew up and grabbed Connie, "Careful! Don't let her go!"

Peridot grabbed to Lapis and Jasper to Peri.

Pearl glanced down at them with anger. She tried to shake Connie off, "Get off of me, you…. Oh, what even are you?!" The gem slammed her sword hilt on Connie's hand. Connie gave a grunt in pain and released her in it. Lapis gave  
Connie to Peri and flew up at Pearl. She grabbed her and pulled, trying to catch her.

"Urgh! You little wretch! Let go!" Pearl yelled, slashing at Lapis' wings, making the gem falter enough so Pearl could escape. She turned to them, "I will get you, you Connie, and your servants will be shattered soon enough!"  
Pearl leapt out of a window in the ceiling.

Lapis fell back, only a pink slipper in her hand from Pearl's foot. She flew to the ground, and gave the slipper to Peridot. Connie ran up, looking disappointed, "I… I thought we had her this time…"

"Don't you worry your pretty little head off, Connie." Peridot said with a small smile, patting her head, "We're getting her next time."

"You think so?" Connie whispered.

"If the shoe fits!" Jasper smirked. Connie giggled and Peridot forced out a simple, "HA!"

Lapis smiled nearby, away from them, giving a sigh of relief, "... It's over… Finally, over."

* * *

 **Sorry this is so late guys! Also, I am thinking about starting up anamino for this fic, but I need two things, a cover image,and all of you! You can talk about theories, ask me questions, anything you want! If anyone is interested in it, or in making fanart (much encouraged) for a cover image, tell me! Give me your thoughts, this is all for you!**


	67. Nightmare Carwash

Connie and Steven leapt on Lion to Steven and Greg's van, after a successful training session. Steven hopped off and helped Connie down with a little, "My liege!"

Connie gave a tiny smile.

Steven tilted his head, "What's wrong?"

The girl shook her head, "I just can't get her words out of my head, Steven."

"Pearl…" Steven whispered knowingly. Connie had told him about the near-death experience. "It's okay, Connie! I'll protect you! I'll give her some of this!" He kicked to his left. "And a little bit of this!" He made a motion to shove, "And some of my boomerang shield!"

Connie smiled.

"Gee, I sure wish I could practice here." Steven sighed, "Then, when any Homeworld gems come, I can protect you and the Earth right away! I'll be ready!"

Connie had a sudden idea and turned to Lion, "Lion, may I please get something really quick?"

Her pet lowered it's head and Connie inhaled. She leapt in and soon came back out with a metal shield. She had polished the thing from the day she had found it along with her mother's scabbard. She knelt to Steven, "Hold your right hand up."

He did slowly.

"Now, repeat after me, I, Steven Demayo,"

"I, Steven Demayo,"

"pledge to protect my friend and jam bud, Connie Universe,"

"pledge to protect my friend and jam bud, Connie Universe,"

"as well as myself, when danger comes to Earth."

"as well as myself, when danger comes to Earth."

"I shall be the shield of Stevonnie, using this sacred item as it."

"I shall be the shield of Stevonnie, using this sacred item as it."

"This, I promise you."

"This, I promise you." Steven said truthfully. Connie smiled, "Then, I proclaim you my knight!"

Steven had stars in his eyes as he accepted the shield.

"It's from a fallen solider of my mother, it's very ancient and special, I want you to have it!" Connie explained, "You can practice at home now."

Steven gave a tiny squee in joy but then tried to hand it back, "No, I can't! It belongs to you."

Connie shook her head, giving it back, "We have to be ready for anything! Pearl, Sugilite… Those horrible fusion monsters,"

"If you insist." Steven blushed. Connie then held her hand up, "Now, repeat that pledge for me, replacing your name with mine, and shield with sword!"

Steven was about to start, when they heard a humming, "Caribbeana! Caribbeana!"

The boy gasped and shoved Connie into the van. "We can't let my dad find this shield!"

Connie gave a cry, not seeing her pet anywhere, "Lion? Where's Lion?!"

"No time!" Steven cried. He hopped in and slammed the door shut.

Greg soon opened the van to see Steven playing ukulele and Connie tapping her knee to the rhythm.

"Oh! Hey stuball!" Greg said happily, "I see you brought Connie along too!"

Connie smiled happily, "Hello, Mr, Demayo!"

Steven grinned, "Hello, daddyo! I was just showing Connie a new song I made, want to listen?"

"Oh, that sounds interesting, bud, but I'm pretty tired out today." Greg said, hanging his coat obliviously on the sword which Connie had propped up and covered in a hat. Steven sat nervously on the shield, "Long day at the carwash?"

"Oh yeah. This car I got to clean up today was huge!" Greg said. "But, I can't really find who dropped it off…" The man frowned, seeing the nervous children, "You kids okay?"

They nodded in unison.

"Okay…" Greg said. He then realized something, "Wait… when did we get that shiny chair?" He walked up and Steven shifted on the shield. "Son, are you hiding something from me?"

Steven laughed, sweat coming to his face, "No! I mean… uh…." Connie glanced it him. Steven gave a moan, "Dad, it's a shield! I'm sorry!" He showed the shield and Greg gasped, ""By jove! Steven!"

Connie bit her lip.

Greg shook his head, "Kids, swords and shields are really dangerous! Steven, where did you get this?" His phone suddenly rang and he answered, "Hey, I can't talk right now… I know! I promise I'll-... Okay, I'll be there soon." He hung up and looked at the kids. "Connie, I'm afraid you have to go home, I have a work emergency."

"Whhhhaaat?!" Steven gasped while Connie hung her head, "Understood, sir…. May I at least have my shield back? Please? It's very important."

The father hesitated, "I-I'm going to have to get a ok from your dad before I can, Connie. Surely you understand?"

"I would under any other circumstance, but I can't go home, it's so valuable to me."

Greg sighed, "Well, you're going to have to keep away from it for today. I'll call your dad tonight, sound good?"

Connie glanced at a sorry Steven, "Yes." She opened the van doors and hopped down.

"I'll walk you home." Steven said, going after her.

They waved goodbye to Greg as he closed the doors.

The kids sadly watched him drive off until a wet nose nuzzled Connie's arm. She turned to see Lion, "Lion? Where were you?!"

Steven gently pulled Connie away, "Sorry. Dad gets scared if I'm in any danger… even though I'm not here."

Connie nodded. "It's okay… I better get going home anyway, the Temps are probably worried-" She heard a gentle growl and turned back to Lion.

"What is it?" Connie asked.

The lion gave moan and seemed to look determined about something. He shoved his nose under her hand and he bent down so she would hop on.

"... Lion, I can't get the shield back until Dad gives the ok, you know that. Greg said to go home and I can't disobey-"

"Random lion ride!" Steven cried, hugging Lion before hopping on. Connie hesitated before getting on as well. Lion roared and transported them to the car wash.

They soon jumped down and Steven halted Lion before he tried to walk, "Whoa, buddy. If my dad was scared of Connie's shield, he'll have a heart attack seeing you! So, can you stay outside? Please?"

Connie was surprised to see Lion obey and lay down. He then looked at her with begging eyes and she gave a laugh, "Okay! Okay! You can have some Lion Lickers, but you gotta stay here!" She threw some Lion Lickers out of her pocket and Steven gave a gag, "Ew! Lion Lickers!?"

Connie gave a laugh, "It's the only thing he gets to do what I want, despite the irony of it."

Steven gave a mumble in agreement.

Connie giggled until she gave a sigh, "Remeber what we're here for, my knight. It is time to get serious." Connie said, putting her hands straight.

"Right, serious." Steven repeated, also doing the hand gesture. Connie got her sword from Lion and they ran up to "It's a Wash" doors.

"Yikes…" Steven murmured, as they walked in the visitor center. "I forgot how spooky this place can get after dark…"

They heard a sudden moan and Steven gasped, "What was that?!" He instinctively tried to grab Connie's hand but she already held her sword. She blushed, "Sorry, I just feel like I've heard that kind of moan before… and I don't think it's friendly." She sheathed her sword and took his hand, squeezing it for reassurance.

They suddenly heard a distant singing, and knew it must be Greg. Connie made a hush motion, and pulled Steven with her. They saw a gleam of light suddenly fill the room and ran to the window, seeing Greg try to move a covered car. Steven then gasped and pointed at the shield, which was leaning against a bucket full of soapy water.

They saw Greg struggling and sweating, still not able to move the thing. He gave a sigh and walked up to the glass door to the visitor center, not seeing Connie and Steven sneaking past him.

The two attempted to grab the shield many times, but the sudden moans from the car kept stopping them.

The door then opened and Greg ran in. He ripped the shield away, "Steven! Buddy, what are you two doing here? I know this shield technically belongs to you, Connie, but your dad is so concerned about safety, I can't even let a shield near you." He turned to his son, "Stuball, you know how much I need to look like a responsible parent, and I'm really trying…. I just wish your-"

They heard another moan and Connie unsheathed her sword, pointing it at the open garage door which had a shadowy mound darkening it.

"Connie! This is even worse!" Greg cried.

Connie stepped in front of the Demayos. "I'm sorry, but that thing is not a car, it's a fusion experiment!"

"A what?!" Greg gasped.

The monster had a beam of moonlight shine on it and Greg fell back in shock, breathing hard and trying not to faint. Connie saw the button to shut the door and slammed on it swiftly. The monster moaned in pain as it was pushed to the ground.

"That takes care of that one, for now." Connie huffed. She turned to see Greg had stepped in front of Steven, looking at Connie with worry, "I want to belevie you're good, but-"

"Dad! Connie is good! She and I are a team! You gotta gimme that shield!" Steven begged, pulling on it.

"Steven! Please, don't make this harder!" Greg moaned, "I'm trying to protect you!"

Steven made a pouty face when suddenly, the covered car started to move. Greg looked at it with suprise, "What the.."

Connie pointed her sword, Steven already standing firm behind her.

"Think it's a gem mutant?" Steven asked.

"I know it…" Connie said through gritted teeth. Steven gasped and ran from Connie who called out for him to wait.

"Dad! Dad, get away from there!" Steven begged, sliding in front of it.

Greg was about to uncover it, "What? Why?"

"PLEASE!" Steven cried, tears in his eyes.

The monster suddenly rose up behind him and Connie gasped as it grabbed Steven from behind.

"Steven!" Greg cried. Connie was suprised her hands didn't glow with power, but ran to the monster, sword drawn, "Get away from my liege!"

She tried to hit it with her sharp blade, but it threw her aside, making her hit a metal wall and nearly go unconscious.

Steven tried to run to her aid but he saw the other fusion monster had escaped and was going for his dad. Steven ran to his father who already beared a hose. Greg sprayed, keeping the thing away. Steven turned back to see Connie reaching for her sword as the other lurched to her.

"Dad! Connie's in danger! I can save her!" Steven yelled.

Greg tilted his head, "Since when?!"

Connie gave a strained yell, barely blocking the monster with her sword, "Mr. Demayo, your son has been training! He knows how to block a sword, monsters like these, he knows how to block the most skilled swordswoman I know!"

"But, I don't understand!" Greg cried.

Steven gave a sigh, "You're right, you don't! Did you even notice when I broke my arm a few months ago and the next night, I was able to grab my ukalale off it's hook?"

"I… I did, but I thought I was dreaming!" Greg insisted, "I… had to be! You're my son! I have to protect you! You're all I have! How would it even heal?"

"Because Connie has magic healing spit, Dad!And I drank her juice box!" Steven cried. Connie blushed behind him. "Ever since I've met Connie, she's been my best friend! She's super cool and has magic powers and can sword fight and has a lion! I didn't think I could help her, but I can now! Let me protect her! Let me protect you! So give me that shield!"

Greg sputtered and Steven tore the shield away. Connie gave a cry as she couldn't block it any longer, it crushing her to the wall. Steven slid in front of her, and blocked. Connie took the opportunity to stab it and poof it. Steven then flung his shield like a frisbee, and it slashed right into the other gem. Connie ran up and bubbled them both, sending them away to the temple.

A few minutes later, Connie, Steven, and Greg walked away from the wash.

"So you two have been trained to fight those monsters? That's… interesting." Greg whispered. He suddenly nearly walked into Lion and gave a yell. Steven ran to the animal and hugged it. "This is Connie's lion! He's so soft and he likes to get his belly rubbed! He's a cutie, isn't he?"

Greg gave a numb nod.

"Sorry I lied, Dad." Steven sighed. "It's just… when mom died, I was all you had, making us have such a strong bond…. I didn't want to break it by revealing how much I lied to you… I just didn't want you to be scared of this magic gem stuff, or worse, of Connie, and not let me be with her."

"It scares me more that you couldn't find it in you to tell me!" Greg cried. "Buddy, you're my world, and if… this," He gave the shield to Steven, "and that," The man pointed at Lion, "and… her," Connie had jumped at a slight noise and pointed her sword at a bush in instinct. "are part of your world? They're part of mine too. I love you, son."

"I love you too, daddio."

Connie glanced to her sword and then at her chest. She hugged herself.


	68. Lars' Sweets

Connie hummed softly to herself as she entered the Big Doughnut, hoping to get a snack before heading to the library for some her time. She gave Sadie a tiny wave as she passed her but the teen ignored her. Connie walked up to the counter and was about to call out for Lars when he suddenly walked in from the back room. He didn't notice Connie watching him as he happily frosted some cupcakes he had just taken out. Connie's mouth was watering slightly at the appetizing scent.

"Lars! Those cupcakes look amazing!" Connie cried.

Lars gave a yell of surprise and nearly dropped the tray. "Connie?! I-I wasn't…"

"May I try one?" Connie asked hopefully.

Lars blushed and handed her one, "No one really knows I can bake…"

Connie took a bite and her eyes turned to diamonds with a happy smile. "These are incredible!"

Lars gave a laugh, "Well, thanks." He opened a little bag and put a few of the treats in, giving it to her, "On the house, miss Universe."

"Really?" Connie gasped. Lars nodded and she took the bag gratefully. "Thank you!" The girl turned slightly and saw out of the corner of her eye, a poster for Beach-a-Palooza.

She ran to it and took it off the wall. "Lars! You should serve your treats at Beach-a-Palooza!"

"What? I can't!" Lars insisted.

Connie nodded happily, "Sure you can! I'll help you… somehow… Besides, everyone in town is doing something to help out."

"Yeah… Yeah!" Lars cried, determined. "I won't even appear on stage!"

Connie and Lars were now in his room and Lars blew dust off a cookbook, "We've got lots of work to do!"

They hurried downstairs and got all the ingredients out together when they heard a sudden soft gasp, "Laramie?"

They turned to see a small woman with red hair.

"Mom!" Lars groaned, annoyed.

"Sorry to interrupt you two, but are you baking?" Lars' mother asked.

Connie nodded, "We are, Mrs. Barriga. My name's Connie, pleased to meet you!" They shook hands and the woman looked at Lars, "I'm glad you're having fun."

Surprisingly, his mother walked out, not saying anything more.

"Your Mom seems nice." Connie offered up, stirring the mix.

Lars smiled, "Yeah, I'm really lucky to have them…" He then gave a tiny sigh.

Connie stopped stirring to look back to him. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Connie." Lars sighed. "I kinda wished my mom would've stayed around to help though, I'm surprised she didn't, we used to do this all the time when I was little…"

Connie looked back to the cupcakes. "Maybe you should tell her that?"

"No! It's clear she wouldn't even want to, she didn't offer or anything." Lars blushed.

The girl rolled her eyes. "If you say so."

Soon, they had prepared the cupcakes and were just waiting for them to bake while hang out in Lars' room.

Connie had gone home and grabbed her violin to play, with all that had been going on, she hadn't exactly had time to practice. She had set it all up and glanced at Lars, "Any requests?"

Lars thought for a moment then snapped his finger in a idea, "How about Sadie's favorite song? That's all I can think of at the moment. It's, er, about stars?"

Connie thought of popular songs and then realized what song he was thinking of. "Let me give this a try…" Connie said. She started to play the quick and catchy tune of Haven't You Noticed.

When she finished, Lars cheered for her.

"Connie, that was great!" Lars cried. "You should sing tonight at the show!"

Connie blushed, "Thank you… I probably couldn't go on stage though, all those people watching me."

"You have before, tons of times! Last Beach-a-Palooza, Mayor Dewey's play, lots of stuff."

"I couldn't go onstage, alone…" Connie rephrased.

"But you're so good!" Lars insisted. "Here, how about this, when we set up the cupcakes tonight, you sing beside it, not appearing on stage at all."

Connie seemed to contumplate this and then slowly nodded, "I… guess it could be fun."

They suddenly smelt the cupcakes and Lars ran down the stairs with Connie not far behind. They opened the oven and took out the cupcakes.

"Perfect." Connie said.

A few minutes later, they made a sign for the stand and Lars saw his parents peeking in. They hid once he noticed. Connie gave a small smile while coloring.

That night, they had everything packed up, the table, table-cloth, sign, and of course, the cupcakes. Lars practically lifted them all while Connie trotted behind him. She felt Lars' parents watching and turned to them.

"Lars, I'll be there in a moment, ok?" Connie asked. Lars nodded and started to walk to the beach. Connie turned back to his parents.

"You know, I think he wants you to come…" Connie blushed.

Lars' mother tilted her head, "He does?"

The father frowned, "I didn't know that."

"Yeah… It's okay if you don't want to, I understand. Lars does too." Connie said, balancing the cupcake container on her knee.

"Of course we want to come, dear." Said Mrs. Barriga, surprised. "We just haven't gone to any of his events, because we thought he would be embarrassed by us."

"Oh…" Connie murmured. "Well… he might be a little at first, but from what he's said to me today, he'd like if you'd come."

Later that night, Connie and Lars had set up the stand and Lars was nearly under the table in fright. It was nearly time for people to start coming. "I can't do this, Connie! I can't let anyone know I bake!"

"Sure you can! Lars, we worked hard all day." Connie said reassuringly, seeing people coming and walking up to the stand.

Mr. Frowney then walked up, "Connie Universe, I see you've once again set up a place to sell… I've told everyone about it, so prepare yourself..." He sighed sadly.

"We aren't selling, sir. We're handing them out to people who want them. Lars is an amazing baker!"

"No I'm not!" Lars yelled from under the table.

"Don't be nervous." Mr. Frowney said, "Everyone will soon know your secret and strange passion that no one else has. And with it, they will talk, and talk, and talk-"

"Thanks, Mr. Frowney! That was a awesome peptalk." Connie lied. She glanced back to a sweating Lars. Mr. Frowney walked away and Connie bent back to under the table. "You sure you don't want to?"

Lars shook his head, "I can't."

Connie gave a sigh. "Fine, I'll just… leave you alon-."

"No!" Lars cried, making Connie halt in putting away the food. "I don't want you to ignore me… not like my parents do."

"Oh Laramie, we weren't ignoring you." Lars glanced over to see his parents.

"Son, we were just giving you space! We thought teens needed space." His dad said.

"But not to the point where I feel like I can tell you nothing about my life!" Lars cried.

His parents were shocked and Connie glanced at the people waiting for cupcakes. "Er…"

Lars looked at them, with a embarrassed smile, "S-Sorry…" He walked off with his parents, Connie knowing they would talk out their problems. She smiled at the crowd and said, "Lars made these! Try them, they're free and really good!"

As people started to take some, Connie took a breath and started to play her violin and people soon cheered for her.

The next day, Lars and Sadie ate a new batch of cupcakes fresh out of the oven as Connie happily played her violin.


	69. Catch and Release

Connie put on her nightgown, brushed her hair, cleaned her face and ears and polished her gem. She yawned, exhausted.

The girl walked into her room and got into bed. She felt a strange feeling and opened her eyes. She saw a shape at the edge of the bed… it looked familiar. Quietly, she snuck over. The girl blinked and then saw the thing was gone. Connie cocked her head in confusion, "What? I could've sworn-" Suddenly, something grabbed her hair and pulled her back, putting a hand over her cries.

Her captor warped to the Galaxy Warp and Connie saw it was Pearl.

"Urgh! Let go of me! Put me down!" Connie cried, kicking.

"Oh, stop struggling!" Pearl made a hollow version of herself that restrained the girl. "It's useless to try and escape. And as for your powers? If you try to use them, I give the sign for my double to poof you!"

"The warp's broken! You'll never take me to Rose Quartz." Connie growled, struggling. "I'll never, ever go to her! Not without a fight!-"

"Yes, yes." Pearl said, rolling her eyes. "Aren't you so brave."

Connie was surprised when the holo disappeared, and fell to the ground. She gave a growl of anger, she hadn't felt this kind of anger in a while, it was consuming her, "Whatever it is you want me to do, I'll never help you."

"Fix the warp pad, now." Pearl hissed.

Connie tried to act confused, "But, how am I supposed to? I don't have healing powers, I have destabilizing ones."

"Oh, don't play dumb with me, Yellow Diamond. I never got the chance to thank you for healing Amethyst's gem." Pearl said, circling her.

"Amethyst…" Connie whispered. She glared up at Pearl. "Why do you pretend to care about her?! She fused with Garnet, did you know that?!"

"I don't pretend to care about her!" Pearl snapped. Her sword nearly hit Connie's nose and she grimaced. "Fix the warp, or else."

Connie frowned and glanced at the warp then back at Pearl. "Never!" She yelled. The girl got up and did a practiced roll around her. She attempted to run to the warp but Pearl grabbed her quickly. "Stop it! This was my last chance to go home!"

Connie glanced up in surprise at the desperation in her voice and felt Pearl start to cry, "I'm going to die here. I'll never see Amethyst, or Garnet…" Pearl suddenly started to sob. "I'll never see Rose again!"

"Whoa… It's okay…" Connie tried. "Um, Earth isn't that bad."

"It doesn't matter what it's like." Pearl hissed, glaring at her. "It won't be _anything_ soon."

"What?"

Suddenly, the Temps warped in.

"Oh my stars! Connie!" Peridot cried.

Pearl gasped and released Connie in order to wipe away her tears.

Connie ran to the Temps and they all hugged her, Jasper practically crushing them. Jasper then glared up at Pearl, "You're gonna regret kidnapping my kid."

Pearl gave a frightened noise and tried to run but Lapis flew up and slammed her to the ground with water as Peridot trapped her in metal chains.

Jasper did a spin attack to get close.

Pearl gasped in fear, eyes widened, but she didn't look at Jasper when she said, " "Wait! Please! You need me! I know about the-"

Jasper was about to slam her helmet on the gem when suddenly, a yellow beam went straight into her, making her poof. They turned to Connie, who's hands surged with power, the girl's eyes shadowed. Connie ran up to the Pearl and held it in her tiny hands. Part of her just wanted to crush it in her power, and Connie had to shake her head to bring herself back. Where in the world had shattering come from? She had never wanted to shatter a gem, it wasn't like she was somehow better than them. She bubbled it and looked up at Jasper. "She was trying to tell us something…"

"I've captured many gems, kiddo. They always say you need 'em. Now we don't have to worry about her kidnapping you and taking you away to Homeworld." Jasper said, throwing Pearl's swords away into the water.

"Connie… are you okay?" Lapis asked, seeing Connie stare at her hands. Connie jolted back and looked up, "Huh? Oh, um, yes, I'm fine."

About an hour later, Connie had been tucked into bed. She gave a groan in annoyance and turned to Peridot watching her. "Peridot, please, I'm fine, you can leave now… I can't exactly sleep with you watching me."

"You… I wasn't… what? I would never-!"

"Out." Connie moaned.

Peridot gave soft angry mutters as she walked away, catching, "never lets me watch her sleep.. it's not creepy."

Connie flopped back down into her bed and sighed softly. She noticed a pink slipper on her bookshelf and crawled out to get it. She turned on her reading lamp on her bedside table and turned the thing over and over. "What was she trying to say? I wish I knew… Wish I hadn't been so careless..." Suddenly, her gem glowed and her room opened. She hopped down from her bed and ran in.

"Room, I need to talk to Pearl." Connie said. Pearl appeared in the clouds and cried out exactly what she had said before, pausing where Connie had destabilized her. Connie looked at the frozen fear in her face and gave a groan, "No! What in the world are you talking about?!" She lowered her head in frustration then slowly lifted it up, "Room, I need to go to the burning room, please. The real burning room." The clouds parted and Connie saw a vein of the Crystal Heart. She ran to it and slid down it, laughing in delight at the sudden race of air. She let go and tried to do an amazing flip. She nailed it until she landed and then fell back into her behind.

"Still needs some work." Connie murmured. She looked up and saw Pearl's gem float above her. The girl climbed the bubbles and popped the bubble. Pearl regenerated and cried out, "the cluster, so get away from me!" She panted and then saw where she was. Connie hopped down and pulled out her sword, not pointing it, but merely holding it.

"Where am I?!" Pearl cried.

Connie sighed, "In the temple."

She looked up at all the bubbled gems and froze in fear, "I can't be contained!"

Connie frowned and walked to her to assure the gem. "Don't worry, I won't hurt you."

Pearl was frightened, and in her fright, slapped Connie. The girl gave a cry in pain.

"Hey! I saved you!" Connie growled. "People shouldn't hurt their savior!"

"I… hurt you?" Pearl asked.

Connie nodded.

Pearl started slapping her repeatedly, "Feel my anger! Feel it! Rhaaa!"

Connie shoved her off and pointed her sword threateningly. "I freed you for a reason! Why were you so afraid? Huh?"

Pearl looked at Connie with disbelief, thinking her wouldn't do such a thing. Connie thrust her sword forward. "Tell me!" She snarled.

Pearl gave a gasp and Connie softened. What was with her today? She was just so angry… "... Please… tell me."

Pearl frowned. "I was here because of the Cluster. I was meant to check on it… until I gained that you were here. Then, I was my mission to capture you. And just when I was about to shatter your rebellion and bring you to Rose, I got trapped here! I… I really miss her."

"Rose Quartz?" Connie asked.

Pearl nodded somberly. "She'd never forgive me for failing her…"

Connie tilted her head and whispered, "Well… everyone should have a second chance…."

"This was my second chance." Pearl growled. She suddenly kicked Connie's sword up and slid under the girl. She ran out the door and Connie yelled, "Wait! Don't leave!"

Pearl ran out into the room and laughed, "I did it! And now to find my swords and…" She glanced forward and saw Lapis, Peri, and Jasper staring at her with open mouths, Jasper frozen in a position of eating a massive sandwich.

"Uh, uh…" Pearl stammered.

"You're dead meat." Jasper growled.

Pearl started to run, away but Lapis flew up and smacked the gem to the ground.

"Guys! Wait!" Connie protested, but Pearl had already run into the bathroom and locked the door. Pearl panted inside.

The Temps ran to it and Peridot whispered, "This is going to be a strange experience for her… cause' that's the bathroom."

Pearl looked around and whispered softly so the others wouldn't hear, "What is this place?" She glanced at the toilet. "An escape!"

They heard the toilet flush and Lapis gave a sigh, "Get out of the toilet, it isn't going to work."

Pearl gave a sputter as Lapis' powers lifted her out.

"How is this possible?! How did that clod get out? We bubbled her!" Peridot cried.

Lapis glanced at Connie, "Well… Connie is new to bubbling-"

"I popped it." Connie sighed.

"WHAT?!" Peridot screeched.

"She was scared, I needed to know why." Connie answered firmly.

"The reason she was scared is we finally caught her, there would be no other reason." Lapis insisted.

Connie shook her head. "It wasn't that. It was something called the Cluster…"

"A cluster of what?" Jasper asked, "Cluster of granola?"

"No, just a cluster.."

"I'll never tell you about it!" Pearl called from the bathroom.

"I order you to tell me. We both know a Lapis Lazuli is far outranking a Pearl, we all outrank you, especially Connie!" Lapis huffed.

"Tell us! Now!" Jasper growled.

"I… um… Never! I'll never tell you, you war machine!"

"Hey! That's true, but it still hurts!" Jasper snarled. Connie held her back from punching the door of its hinges.

"No, we shouldn't demand her…" Connie muttered.

"But we need whatever information she has!" Peridot cried.

"GHAA! It's burning me! Is this acid?!" They suddenly heard.

"It's hot water!" Connie called. "Turn the other knob for cold!"

Later, in the kitchen, the Temps contemplated on what to do.

"Wait, she's staying in my bathroom?" Connie cried.

"Well, she's going to have to if she won't come out." Peri shrugged

"What are we to do? Put her outside on a leash?" Lapis asked.

"Yes!" Peridot cried.

"Love that plan!" Jasper said at the same time.

Lapis nodded, "That is a pretty good idea…"

"Guys… I need to go." Connie muttered softly.

Jasper shook her head, "We are not letting you out of our si-"

"I need to go." Connie said with conviction.

"Oh." Jasper said, now getting what she meant. "Well, you can't right now."

"But-" Connie started.

Lapis stopped her, "Just go in the ocean! The fish do it all the time!"

"Ugh…" Connie moaned.

The next morning, the Temps, excluding Connie stood outside the bathroom door.

"Pearl, if you don't open this door right now, I will kick it down!" Jasper growled.

"Oh, and bubble me again? Oh ho ho, I'm so scared!" Pearl cried sarcastically, acting dramatic.

Jasper gave a growl. "I am going to-"

"What is this Cluster? Just tell us already!" Lapis moaned.

"You better not have made it with that Kindergarten!" Jasper growled, leaning against the door. "You're killing this planet!"

Connie suddenly innocently walked up and knocked on the door. "Pearl, may I come in?"

Pearl cracked open the door for her and peeked out. "No."

Connie slid in anyway and gave Pearl her pink slipper back, "Here you go."

"Hm. This is useful. I rather missed it from when you last attacked me. May I ask where my swords are?" Pearl said, slipping it back on.

"Er…" Connie murmured. She switched topics, "Would you mind handing me that?" Pearl turned and saw the girl's toothbrush. She picked it up and examined it. "What is this thing?"

"It's my toothbrush!" Connie said happily. She took it from Pearl.

"And…that? What is that?" She pointed at Connie's hairbrush and the hybrid picked it up. "My hairbrush!"

"And that thing?" Connie glanced over at what Pearl was pointing at.

"A towel…" Connie said. The girl only then noticed Pearl was staring at her hands every time she demonstrated a thing. Connie realized that Pearl must've been remembering the time she had been poofed, how angry, and upset Connie must've looked. Connie put the towel down and showed her normal, non-glowing palms to Pearl. "I'm sorry. I must've scared you when I destabilized you…. But I won't hurt you again. I lost control over my emotions before. Instead, I'll focus that passion on this Cluster, I want to help to make you feel safe again…"

Pearl sat down and the toilet and gave a small laugh. "That won't be an easy task."

Connie gave a weak smile. "Um… this may be a bad time, but I have to use that…" She said nervously with a blush, pointing at the toilet.

"For what?" Pearl whispered.


	70. When it Rains

"OPEN. THE. DOOR!" Jasper yelled.

"No! I'll never talk to you!" Pearl cried. "Never!"

Jasper gave a growl, "What is the Cluster?! We need to stop it!"

"You… can't." Pearl sighed. "That's all I'm telling you."

"Listen up clod, what do you want?" Peridot asked, leaning on the door. Pearl was silent and Peridot smirked at the gems. "See? She's thinking it over! Bribery always works."

"I want my swords back, now." Pearl answered. "Then I might tell you more."

They glanced at Lapis who gave a weak sigh. "I'm pretty sure they aren't in the water anymore, I can't feel them. They probably washed up on a beach somewhere."

"You threw my swords into the ocean?!"

Peridot gave a strained, "Maybe?"

They heard Pearl give a scream of rage.

"Thank you for the privacy, Pearl." Connie said, as she slipped out of the bathroom. She blushed at the Temps. "Sorry if I interrupted your interrogation, guys"

"Oh, that's just fine, kiddo." Jasper smiled softly.

Peridot gave a grunt. "The Pearl must crack soon!"

"I never will, you…. you CRYSTAL TWERPS!" Pearl yelled from the bathroom, evilly laughing.

"YOU'RE THE TWERP, YOU LITTLE-!" Peridot yelled before Lapis grabbed her arm.

"Whoa, chill. If she won't talk, we'll have to search for this thing on our own." Lapis said. Peridot gave a grumble, admitting Lapis' resolve.

They walked to the warp pad but Connie chased after them. "Wait! Aren't I coming?"

"Eh, we need you to stay here and guard our prisoner, ok?" Jasper said.

"Really?!" Connie gasped in surprise.

Lapis glanced at Jasper and then at Connie. "What if Pearl tries to kidnap her again? Or worse, hurts her?"

"Lazuli, you worry far too much!" Peridot smirked. "The Homeworld warp is down and she is harmless without her swords."

"I'm not harmless!" They heard Pearl call from the bathroom.

"Hey! SHUT UP!" Jasper yelled. She glanced back to Connie with a grim expression. "Kid, I've got something you need to know before I leave."

"What is it?" Connie asked, a bit frightened.

"You need to know this, it's very important." Jasper whispered softly and sharply. She then formed a heart close to her chest. "I love you!"

Connie giggled and Jasper waved goodbye as Lapis blushed and Peri had a tiny smile.

Later, Connie was making vegetable soup. It was raining very hard and she glanced at the bathroom door. "Are you okay in there? You haven't spoken in a while."

There was only silence.

"Pearl?" Connie called, turning away from the soup and to the door. She walked over to the door and was abou to knock when a huge crash of thunder filled the house. She heard Pearl give a sob of fear and opened the door to see the gem clenching her knees to her chest.

"Pearl?" Connie whispered. Pearl gave a small gasp and wiped away her tears.

"Are we… dead?" Pearl asked. "Has the Cluster emerged?"

Connie gave a small life, "Oh! That isn't the Cluster, that's just thunder. That happens when it rains, kinda scares you a bit, hm?"

Pearl blushed and shook her head. "It didn't scare me! Ha! As if… silly…. ra-in."

"You've never heard about rain before?" Connie asked surprised.

"I'm afraid I haven't." Pearl said softly.

Connie glanced out the window at the rain. "Well… the bookstore would be closed at a time like this, so I guess I'll go with a simpler route." She motioned for Pearl to follow her to the soup. "Okay… So pretend that this soup is the ocean. When the sun, or in this case, the flame, heats it up, the water or soup evaporates into clouds, like the steam, and when they get heavy, it rains."

Pearl looked scepticel. "So, burning liquid comes down from the sky?"

"Huh? Oh! No!" Connie laughed. "It's just water! Come on, I'll show you." She switched off the stove and ran to the door. Opening it, she ran out and twirled in the rain, to show it was harmless.

"See? It's so much fun!" Connie laughed. Pearl stood in the doorway hesitantly and Connie offered her hand. "I promise you're safe!"

Pearl reached out her hand and flinched when the first drop fell on her. She tried again and slowly stepped out into the rain.

"Yeah! Isn't this amazing? It's really beautiful when you think about it!" Connie grinned.

Pearl glanced down at her wet pink dress and soggy slippers. "... It truly is."

Connie soon was back in the house and wrung out her hair before using a towel. "I told you you were safe. I haven't played in the rain in a long time."

Pearl was silent, still feeling how wet her outfit had become. She then spoke: "Yellow Diamond?"

Connie glanced up. "You can call me Connie, like you did before."

"Connie, thank you." Pearl forced out.

Connie smiled. "For… what?"

"For explaining rain to me." Pearl said with a small smile.

"Of course! My job is to make you feel safe." Connie giggled.

Pearl smiled wider and said suddenly: "Oh! This is perfect! You are… quite knowledgeable in Earth, aren't you?"

"I'd like to think so." Connie answered slowly.

"Very useful to me. Very useful indeed…" Pearl murmured. "Connie, I'm about to share some information with you."

"Oh, I already know you like to use my toothbrush." Connie answered with a blush.

"No!" Pearl cried with a teal blush. "I… Well, yes. But this is about the Cluster."

"You're telling me about the Cluster?" Connie asked happily.

"Yes, I just said I was." Pearl answered, rolling her eyes. "Now then-"

"We need to tell the Temps!"

"No! I refuse! Your servants are far less powerful than you, Connie, they couldn't help us! You are all I need." Pearl said, gripping the girl's shoulders.

"Is this another attempt to kidnap me?" Connie asked, suspicious.

Pearl gave a sigh. "No! I wish it was, but I know for a fact that there is no way of the Earth. As I was saying before you rudely interupted, some of my logs that I have been recording are backed up in the Facet Five of the prime Kindergarten."

"The Kindergarten?" Connie whispered.

"Yes! In my logs is valuable information about the Cluster." Pearl answered.

"I… guess we can go." Connie murmured.

"Ha, ha!" Pearl cried punching the air.

"But," Connie countied.

Pearl gave a confused sound, glancing back.

"You need to hold my hand the whole time." Connie said firmly.

"Your… hand?" Pearl choked, glancing down at the girl's hand.

"I promise my destabilizing powers are done for a while." Connie said, offering her hand.

The two warped into the Kindergarden and took it all in.

"Well, here we are." Connie exclaimed.

Pearl nodded. "Then let's go! There's no time to waste!"

Connie peered over the edge and stopped Pearl before she could walk right off. Pearl sighed in annoyance and grabbed Connie, putting the girl on her back, tying her on with the pink ribbons of her dress. "This is the only time." She growled. Connie was about to ask what she meant but Pearl gracefully leapt off the cliff like a ballerina and landed with her legs crossed and arms out. She untied Connie without a word.

"That was incredible!" Connie cried. "You're an amazing warrior Pearl!"

Pearl gave a small smile with a blush. "You think?"

"I know." Connie said. She walked ahead and Pearl waited until Connie was ahead to go after. Connie looked around and sighed. "This place gets worse everytime I come… Are the Kindergartens in Homeworld better?"

Pearl glanced at Connie and then at her pink slippers. "Surely, you don't want to hear me state my opinion…. or anything at all."

Connie froze and turned. "What? What would make you think that?"

"You're a diamond. You may not look like it now, but you are." Pearl said, softly. "No gem, especially not a diamond would care for a Pearl's opinion. I wouldn't think you'd forget that, you just disguised yourself."

"Disguised myself?" Connie whispered. "I'm not Yellow Diamond, my name's Connie, you know that. I'm her daughter."

"Her… daughter?" Pearl asked.

Connie smiled. "Like… a smaller, weaker version of your creator. I was made from my dad, a human, and my mother, Yellow Diamond."

"Oh." Pearl whispered. "So… you're a fusion of some sort? A human fusing with a gem is impossible-"

"You'd be surprised." Connie giggled. "I'm not a fusion, I'm a hybrid. I'm organic…"

"How?" Pearl asked.

Connie smiled. "Well…" She then thought of Rose Quartz, how Pearl was loyal to her no matter what. Telling her the story of how a unknown hybrid never before seen… might be dangerous. "Nevermind. It's nothing…. Are you sure this is safe? Last time I was here, fusion monsters attacked me."

Pearl frowned at Connie brushing away her question but answered. "Yes. That is to be expected. I came here to check on them."

"Can you… teach me more about them?"

Connie walked deep into the Kindergarten, listening to Pearl explain the Cluster: "When it became clear that the Earth was no longer a viable colony, Homeworld decided to use it for something else, a series of experiments. A gem geo-weapon."

Connie shivered a little. "Oh. I see. …. Did you help?"

"Me?!" Pearl started to laugh and when she saw Connie still wondering, she stopped. "Oh, you're serious.. A Pearl like myself is never to help in any projects, we are made to be servants, obeying our masters commands and doing nothing else."

"Oh! Is this it?" Connie asked suddenly. Pearl looked up to see the control room.

"Yes. It is." Pearl said. She walked up to a panel in the wall and sighed. "Oh. We don't have the Jasper with us, do we? Well, that's it! I can't open it and-"

"Try." Connie responded.

"W-what?" Pearl asked, turning to her.

Connie smiled and said again, "Try to open it. You're probably stronger than you think."

Pearl looked at the girl as if she had just spoken another language that she didn't quite understand. "... Well, alright…but I need my hand." Connie let go. Pearl turned, took a deep breath, and attempted to open the panel, pulling and straining and Connie soon helped her pull it off, flinging them both back.

Pearl walked up to the wires and adjusted them. The room lit up with teal and Connie saw a hand rise from the room. Pearl walked up and placed her hand on it. The screen suddenly filled with gem shards.

"These are the early experiments." Pearl explained as Connie slowly touched her own heart. "So many… broken gems…"

"I suppose it is rather morbid, but it's not me, so I'm not complaining…" Pearl sighed. "Homeworld was growing them here, they are merely tests though."

The screen lit up with a globe and a singular dot stood on the coast of North America.

"Merely tests for the monster made out of millions of gem shards: The Cluster." Pearl said.

Connie seemed mortified and tense. "Wait… are you telling me that there's a giant monster gem the size of the Earth under us right now?"

Pearl turned to the girl's distress and bent down to hold her shoulders. "Oh, Connie, don't worry. When it forms, it'll be much, much bigger than the Earth."

Connie tore away from her and her somehow cheery voice. "No…"

"Yes. Right now, it lies dormant, incubating in the Earth's core, but when it emerges and takes its physical form, it will, in theory, destroy the planet." Pearl said, her and Connie watch the Earth blow up on the screen.

Connie started, sweating.

"Since the prototypes are already emerging, The Cluster is next. And we must stop it." Pearl said, matter-of-factly. "I thought it was impossible, but now we have a chance…" The gem turned to the shaking girl.

"A… chance? What is it? Where can we find it?"

Connie asked.

Pearl gave a small chuckle. "You really are a bit dense sometimes…" She then smirked. "It's you!"

"W-What?!" Connie cried.

"Now then! Let's get started now that you're filled in!" Pearl smiled happily as they walked out.

Connie was walking after her and stopped, "Pearl, I can't help you with this…"

Pearl glanced back. "Huh? What do you mean? You know all about Earth, you're a diamond, and with my knolage and technolgy exspereince, we have a chance! Oh, we can do this! Togther! And then-"

"What? No!" Connie cried. "Just because I know how clouds work, and I am some giant woman's kid doesn't mean I know how, or even have the power to stop a giant mutant in the center of the earth! I only know about rain because my dad taught me."

"Ah, yes, the another human I assume?" Pearl asked.

"Yes. I used to be scared of thunder too, just like you. Only when my dad taught me how it worked, I wasn't afraid anymore." Connie exsplained, praying it got through.

"Ah… so what? You have other knolege of the Earth! And I've seen your powers!"Pearl insisted.

"Well, yes, but nothing that I know will help this, and I'm not really in control of my destabilizing. We need the Temps!"

"No! I'm not obeying them!" Pearl frowned.

Connie gave a moan. "You don't have to obey them, we just need their-"

They heard a sudden roar and they gasped.

M

"What was that?!" Pearl cried.

"Gem mutants!" Connie yelled. She grabbed Pearl and made a bubble around them as a monster attempted to attack them.

"What are you doing?!" Pearl moaned. "Where's your sword?!"

"Er, at home?" Connie said nervously.

"What? You didn't think to bring it?!" Pearl growled. Connie shook her head, "I did! I just didn't want you to have access to a sword!"

Pearl rolled her eyes. She grabbed Connie's hand and pulled her away. "We have to run then!"

Connie gave a gasp. "Not that way!"

They ran again. They kept trying to find a spot to hide when suddenly a monster slammed into them, pushing them into a wall. Connie gave a growl through gritted teeth in pain.

"Your powers! Use your destabilizing powers!" Pearl squawked.

"I can't! I told you, I don't control them!" Connie yelled over the monster.

"Don't worry kid! We're coming!" They suddenly heard. Connie gasped in surprise. "It's the Temps!"

A huge tidal wave went in and smashed all the corrupted gems. When they were gone, the Temps stood there, Lapis in front with her eyes shadowed until she saw Connie. They ran over and Connie looked at Pearl. "Pearl, you and I can't do this alone! We need the Temps, or we'll be in over our heads!"

"Connie! Connie, oh my stars!" Peridot cried, worried for the girl. She hugged her tightly and wouldn't let her go. Pearl walked up.

"Pearl?" Lapis asked.

Jasper turned to Connie with a frown. "I told you to watch her!"

Connie gave a sigh. "I know, and I'm-"

"She did what she was told!" Pearl interrupted. The gem glanced over at Connie, who was surprised she had covered for her. Pearl looked back at the Temps and sighed. "Alright, please, hear me out you twer- Grr- Crystal Temps, I've made up my mind! I have to tell you something about…. The Cluster."


	71. Back to the Barn

Pearl gave a cough, calling all the Temps attention. "Because I have no escape from this place, I will now tell you all about the Cluster." Pearl snapped and Connie pushed in a blackboard with a detailed picture of the Earth drawn on it. Pearl pointed to it. "This is your Earth. And at the very center of it lies The Cluster." She turned to Connie who attempted to flip the blackboard. She struggled at it and Jasper got up to help. She raised the girl up so she could reach it, Connie now noticing how small she truly was. They flipped it and there was a circle. In center of a circle was some lines. Pearl pointed to them as Jasper sat back down. "This is the Cluster. A geo weapon made out of millions of gem shards. Formed out of distrust and pain, it is unstable, yet powerful. When it takes it's form, it will destroy all life on this planet."

Connie suddenly leapt up and slashed the chalk over the circle. "Now then, everyone gets the picture?"

The Temps gasped and Pearl took the chalk away.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Pearl hissed in her ear.

"Oh, I'm helping you explain!" Connie cried cheerfully back.

"That will not be necessary!" Pearl huffed. Connie furrowed her eyebrows and frowned.

Pearl gently shooed Connie off to the Temps and erased the blackboard. She waited beside it for a few seconds in silence as the Temps talked.

"Okay, let's find it, and mash it to the ground!" Jasper cried.

Lapis shook her head. "We have to be reasonable here!"

Peridot gave a sigh. "Why can't you just let me handle this? What we need is to build some sort of machine to take us to the center of the Earth." Peridot muttered.

"Shall I find parts?" Pearl asked.

Peridot glanced at her. "Um… alright?"

Pearl suddenly seemed to run at the speed of lighting, right to the microwave. "This primitive radiation concentrator should come in handy!" She ripped it from the wall and threw it to the ground.

"Whoa! What are you doing?!" Connie cried, running up.

"I'm finding parts!" Pearl said.

"I have a idea that doesn't involve destroying the house." Connie smiled.

"Ah, get used to that one." Jasper winked at Pearl who frowned.

"The spare parts in the barn should do nicely. Now, shall we get started on a plan?" Peridot asked with Pearl trotting behind. Connie sat on a swivel chair and had finished drawing a image of a plan, it wasn't very good though.

Pearl suddenly erased it making Connie stop spinning and frown.

"Hey! Connie clearly took time to make that! Even if it wasn't that good, she made a effort!" Peridot snapped. Pearl glanced at her, then at Connie.

"Uh… But… You should come up with the plan, not her." Pearl said, mouth dry.

"I suppose that's true…" Peridot muttered.

Pearl stepped back from the board to let Peridot draw.

"Excellent work." Pearl murmured softly as she drew. Peri glanced back. "Um… thanks?"

Pearl bobbed her head quickly.

Peridot turned back and started to draw the shape of a giant drill, Pearl carefully watching. Peridot felt awkward having Pearl stare at her and turned. "Can I help you with something?"

Pearl shook her head. "Whatever you need, I am here to get it."

Peridot frowned. "It feels like you're acting, and you're really bad at it."

Pearl's calm expression faded to one of boredom. "Ugh, is it that obvious? I hate to serve you, but it's all I know how to do when gems conduct plans. A simple technician like you would love to have a Pearl at their service, despite you all being so… lacking."

"Lacking?" Peridot growled.

Pearl glanced at her with a smirk. "Well, yes! Ha! You have no powers. You can't fuse-"

"What? Peri can fuse!" Connie insisted.

Peridot nodded. "I can! So what are you talking about?"

Pearl rolled her eyes. "I may be a lower rank, but at least I was made right."

Peridot winced slightly and Connie tilted her head. "What do you mean, right?"

"Well, Peridots can't shapeshift or fuse, it's not possible in this day and era!" Pearl said, walking around Peridot and examining her. "Then again, you are a era 1, are you not?"

"... So what?" Peridot growled through gritted teeth.

"So, I suppose you can fuse… and shapeshift as well?" Pearl asked.

Peridot blushed. "I can… and as for my size if you're wondering, er, I suppose I just came out-"

"Weak? Like all your descendants?" Pearl cut in. "I mean, that's all a Peridot is besides a technician."

"I knew that gems had social classes, but I had no idea you were in a lower one, Peri…. How many of there are you?" Connie whispered.

Peridot stuttered to retort but found nothing to say to the clearly shaken girl. She turned to Pearl instead. "Listen, clod. I did not sacrifice my gem in a hundred year war just to be put right back into the mold I was in! And I don't want to be criticized because I'm not in it! If you know how to serve, I'd appreciate that! Now-"

"At least I sided with someone that I'm certain is treats me like a equal, unlike your mockery of a Diamond!" Pearl growled.

Connie gasped in horror and Peridot had her pole wrapped around Pearl in seconds, Lapis and Jasper standing threateningly in the doorway as well.

"EVERYONE CALM DOWN!" Connie yelled in anger, ignoring her surging yellow hands, which had showed up in a flash of the extreme rage Connie had when Pearl had said that she was a mockery, though Connie really hadn't taken much offense herself. The gems all recoiled a bit at the sight of her anger and she blinked. It was gone. "W-why not… just have a competition? To test your strengths, weaknesses, and skills? Maybe… build something."

"Ha! I can make anything better than her!" Pearl smirked.

Peridot gave a smirk as well. "Anything? What about robots?"

"Define a robot." Pearl said sharply to Connie.

Connie thought for a moment and spoke, "Well, they're like the marble robotoids you sent to Earth, the ones that fixed the warps. It is a device devoid of emotion that carries out a task for you."

"Oh…. I-I can make those better than any Peridot!" Pearl huffed. Peridot gave a laugh, running to the barn. "In your dreams!"

Pearl looked confused but then started to run to the barn as well before slowing in front of Connie. The girl looked up after processing it all and Pearl gave a soft whisper. "Yellow Diamond, I'm… I'm not a robot, am I?"

"What? No, of course not." Connie said in surprise. Pearl glanced at the ground and then ran to the barn. Connie watched her and gripped her gem. Lapis walked up and whispered, "What's up? What'd she say?"

"It was nothing." Connie said softly as power tools started up and went over her voice. Lapis and Connie covered their ears.

"What was that!?" Lapis called over the sound.

"It was-!" Connie was interrupted by Peridot coming out in her robot, a short, and bulky thing she created. "Ta da! Look! Look at this! Let's see the Pearl beat my machine!"

"Prepare to be beaten!" Pearl suddenly came out in a taller robot and showed its movability. She smirked smugly seeing hers was taller. "Mine is taller! Ha, ha, I beat you! Challenge over! That's what a Pearl can-"

"No, you can't just win from that!" Connie beamed, feeling small on the ground. She ran to the bulletin board and called out, "Let the competition begin!"

"GO PERI!" Jasper yelled. "YEAH!"

"Yeah! You can do it!" Lapis cried, flying up from her seat in excitement.

"This will test your skills and piloting, to determine who will be in charge of the construction of the drill!" Connie called to the robots and their makers. The first event was balance, and Pearl won that with her thin and elegant robot. The next was crushing, which Peridot nailed. For jumping, Peridot also won. There was speed, which the two were racing so hard they both crashed into a tree.

Connie gave a point to the tree for that. They also did fire making, Pearl won with the robot's slender fingers. They also did spinning, tug-a-war, jumping jacks, and projectile strength. They were tied until the final event.

"This is the final event!" Connie called. Lapis gave a cheer.

"YES! GO PERI, GO!" Jasper screamed.

Lapis clapped and called out, "Show this gem what the Temps are made of!"

Peridot smiled with determination and Pearl frowned in slight jealousy of her fans.

"Ready, set, CHUCK!" Connie cried. The robots each chucked a truck away and the Temps gasped in amazement. Connie gave a nervous laugh, having no idea who won that one. "Let's say you both get a point there!" Connie said happily. She marked it down and counted up the points, everyone with bated breath. "And… oh! It seems you tied!" Connie said, turning to them.

"What? No…" Pearl whispered softly. "I… We need to do it again!"

"Aren't you happy? You proved you're as good as me." Peridot groaned. "You've impressed me slightly, that should be good enough!"

"No! No! No! I didn't do this to prove I was equal! I did this to prove I was better!" Pearl growled. She grabbed Peridot's robot's arm. "You may be a Peridot, you may seem above me, but I'm better than you! Back in Homeworld, your kind is weak! And clearly, that carried over here! You were poorly made!"

Peridot turned to her. "I am not weak! I was not poorly made!" She kicked Pearl's robot over. The Temps all gasped, Jasper with a smile.

Pearl's tackled Peri's, sending them away from the barn. They pulled and pushed and Connie ran up. "Guys! Stop! You're going to get hurt!"

"Yes! Punch her in the face!" Jasper yelled, Lapis looking shocked behind her.

Pearl threw Peridot to the others and Connie gave a cry.

"I'm fine! Time to show this daughter of a clod not to mess with me!" Peridot growled.

"Be careful Peri!" Lapis called, holding Connie close in protection.

"Punch her once for me!" Jasper yelled, making Lapis glare at her.

Pearl's was about to grab Peri's but it blocked and Pearl growled. "You are weak! And pathetic! And poorly made! You served a gem that did nothing important, nothing useful! You and your little team are attempting to do NOTHING!" Peridot suddenly gave a yell and slapped Pearl right in the face. The Temps all gasped. Peri panted and whispered, "You can insult me all you want, but never… _never_ insult my Diamond or my team again!" She got up and smirked. "Even if my kind seems like nothing on Homeworld," She readied for a robot punch. "that's not going to stop me from winning, you muddy clod!" She punched but Pearl's robot caught her arm and Pearl gave a chuckle.

"Wha…" Peri whispered. Pearl then ripped off the arm and sent Peridot to the ground, dazed. She slammed it repeatedly until the Temps ran up.

"Peri!" Her friends cried. Peridot gave a moan.

Pearl gave a victory laugh. "Ha, ha! I am the champion! Hm, I told you I'd-"

"Peri, are you okay?" She heard Connie asked worriedly as she helped Peri up.

Peridot brushed off dirt and grinned. "I'm excellent, Connie."

Lapis suddenly tackled her in a hug, "I was so worried! Don't scare me like that again!"

Peridot blushed. "O-Okay… Will do, Lazuli."

"Aren't you impressed by me?" They glanced up to see Pearl leap down from her robot. "I'm a Pearl! She's a Peridot! Let that sink in! I won, and I'm the leader! She… she is common, and I'm not!" Pearl protested.

"Peri isn't common!" Connie suddenly flared. Pearl looked frightened slightly and Connie softened. "She isn't, and I'm not saying you aren't too. Peridot protects us, guards us, she can fuse, and everything any gem can, and more! She's extraordinary…. and so are you." Connie smiled, offering a hand. Pearl hesitated and whispered, "I… still won though. You all have to obey me anyway!"

"Yeah… That's not how things work on this planet." Jasper smiled. She walked off with the other two and Pearl glanced down at her hurt cheek.

Later, they had nearly picked up all the rubble when Connie saw Pearl approach Peridot with a power drill.

Pearl glanced at her and smiled nervously. "I… had no idea Peridots could be so strong, and loyal too…. Do you miss her?"

"Who?" Peridot asked.

"Yellow Diamond." Pearl responded. "I… I noticed how upset you got before and, hm, I would get the same way if someone insulted Rose…"

Peridot smirked. "I guess we have that in common then."

Pearl gave a small nod. She started up the power tool and Peridot gave a chuckle. "You're holding it upside down."

Pearl blushed and held it rightside up. "Yes… So…. did Yellow Diamond ever see you as a equal?"

"Well… she respected me." Peridot said.

Connie didn't hear anymore as they had walked away from her range of ear, but smiled. "... We're going to stop that Cluster, I know it."


	72. Stepping Over A Line

Pearl had a tape recorder and recorded herself. "Log date 7-11-2. It has been many days since I started building the drill to destroy the Cluster." She glanced at Connie, Peri, and Lapis beside her. "Fine, since the Crystal Temps and I started building the drill to destroy the Cluster."

"I have made the plans, if you want to look them over, Pearl." Peridot said, handing over the blue print. Pearl hesitated before taking it. She seemed nervous until rewinding her tape to say: "Though I'm still afraid, I found the Temps do not plan to harm me, and treat me as a equal, though I tried to prove I was better, this is at least some improvement on how I'm usually treated. At this place, I have also found a way to cope. They have shown me their way of expressing their feelings, they sing, and cry, and sing while they cry. It is a good practice and quite effective." She looked up and saw Lapis giggle, a little blush on her face. Pearl cocked her head, Lapis reminding her of someone.

"Why did we give that clod that recording device?" Peridot growled.

Connie blushed. "It's like a diary. To make her feel better."

Pearl rewinded her tape repeatedly, "Twerps!... They are horrible twerps!... I'm rather tired of saying twerp… what shall I call them now?"

Jasper suddenly walked up with a happy smile. "I yelled at those cows and they ran away! No match for me!" She cracked her knuckles and saw they wanted her to continue. "So, we can get started."

"Alright. I already laid out most materials, so you can do it now." Pearl said, looking between the three older Temps. They stared at her blankly.

"Do… what?" Jasper asked.

"Um…. Fuse, of course! It's a regular practice in Homeworld..." While Pearl rambled on, Connie glanced at the others who looked nearly offended by the tall gem's idea, Jasper's eyes were glowing coals at the gem's words.

A few moments later, Pearl was tied to the fence by Jasper who then casually walked away.

"Ugh! This is outrageous! You can't do this!" Pearl called after her.

Connie gave a slight glare at Jasper and crossed her arms. "No gem should ever be tied up unless she's done a crime. Release her, please."

Jasper rolled her eyes with a smirk. "No can do, kiddo! She brings up Homeworld, says that they use fusion, just like us, I tie her to the fence, is that clear?"

"I guess." Connie shrugged disappointedly.

Pearl struggled to reach for a microwave nearby while Connie walked up with various metals. "Here you are! I hope these are okay." Connie smiled, giving Peridot them.

Peridot leafed through them and grinned. "Very good, Connie! Clearly, you've done your research!"

"I looked up all the metals I didn't know, like tungsten!" Connie beamed excitedly.

Lapis walked up and frowned. "Tungsten? What is that?"

Peridot rolled her eyes at the gem and walked away, "I'm getting started building, Lazuli, maybe you should do the same!"

Lapis frowned but then smirked. The hose suddenly flared up and sprayed Peridot, gently, but with a playful force. Peridot sputtered and Lapis blushed as she giggled. Pearl watched the woman laugh and couldn't help giving a small smile as well in memories. Amethyst would have laughed too, harder than Lapis. She felt rather sad for a moment, knowing Amethyst had made Garnet angry, and that was dangerous…. very, very dangerous. She gripped the dirt in the ground, hard.

"Hey!" Pearl gave a shake, jolting out of her thoughts. She glanced up to see Yellow Diamond, no, Connie, that was her name.

"Oh, um, hello Connie." Pearl blushed. She dropped the dirt, accidentally getting it on her perfect pink dress, but she didn't notice. She reached for a screw driver, and Lapis flew up.

"What are you two up to?" Lapis asked, falling into a sitting position.

Pearl rolled her eyes and gave a huff, trying to reach for a screwdriver. "I need to get that…leverage optimizer."

"Leverage optimizer?" Lapis asked. She glanced at what Pearl was reaching for and smiled and gave a small laugh, "Oh! That's a screwdriver!"

"A what?" Pearl muttered.

Connie picked it up and handed it to Pearl. "Here."

Pearl smiled and started very clumsily trying to open the microwave. "I can't believe I'm doing this, I'm so rebellious!"

Lapis stood and pointed to her nose. "Pearl, what is this?"

"Hm? Oh, that's a scent sponge " Pearl said matter-of-factly.

"And, what is this?" Lapis asked with a laugh, pointing to her eye.

"A vision sphere." Pearl frowned.

Connie was about to interrupt but Pearl pointed to Lapis' fingers, seeming to like how she had made Lapis laugh. "And those are touch stumps!"

Lapis giggled.

"And those are your bare gravity connectors!" Pearl continued, pointing to Lapis' bare feet.

Connie laughed as well. "Pearl, you're so funny!"

"Funny?" Pearl whispered. "Is that what makes you express your joy?"

Connie nodded and Peridot suddenly gave a yell: "Pearl, do you have the magnetron out of that microwave?"

"Not yet!" Pearl cried.

"Well, I guess we'll look for a drill head." Peridot nodded to Jasper.

"You could find one in the Kindergarten. I'd be happy to go." Pearl suggested with a casual sigh.

"Oh no, she is not going to that Kindergarten alone!" Jasper growled. Lapis raised her hand a little and called, "Connie and I could take her!"

Pearl frowned at Jasper while Connie gave a small nod.

"Ok, sure, but be careful. And Laz?" Lapis glanced up. "Keep Pearl in line."

Lapis saluted. Pearl moaned.

Pearl, Lapis, and Connie stood in front of a injector while Pearl held her tape recorder.

"Log date- 7112. I am helping the Lapis Lazuli and Connie get this very old gem drill. I don't know if I can handle it, but I'll sure try." Pearl said to her recorder. Lapis glanced down from her flying position and smiled, "Don't worry, we can do it! We may look delicate, but we're strong."

"That is true, and we both don't often get to use our talents. And you, you obeyed a Jasper, of all gems!" Pearl chuckled. "Does she scare you into it? Why didn't you have Connie put her in her place?"

"Me?" Connie frowned. "Tell Jasper what to do? That's a really bad idea."

"It's not a idea, it's a fact." Pearl snapped.

"I have to obey Jasper, she's the leader." Lapis said, tilting her head.

Pearl rolled her eyes. "Why is she the leader? She's the lowest rank. The Peridot is only a smidge higher."

"We don't have ranks on Earth, Pearl." Lapis whispered.

Pearl gave a laugh. "But you all worshiped Connie before, when she was Yellow Diamond, enough to betray Homeworld for her. Though, you must have felt you had to…." She then glanced at Lapis. "Now, she's a… hybrid. Why don't you listen to her?" Pearl glanced at Connie.

"Because I'm too young." Connie responded, holding herself slightly.

"Well then, with your Diamond being replaced by a inexperienced fusion, unknowing of her power, the Jasper, and the Peridot, you should be the leader of the team, Lapis." Pearl said.

"... Stop saying that." Lapis whispered.

"You outrank everyone." Pearl smiled. Connie flinched. "But then again, you aren't a normal Lapis Lazuli, are you?"

"Please, just be quiet." Lapis growled, eyes darkening.

"You were supposed to shatter the others, and bring Yellow Diamond to Homeworld. Rose told me that before you emerged. We were all waiting for you to bring the rebellion to a end, you were going to be a hero-"

"Please, stop."

"But why? You are practically a legend! Not one held in high regard, but a legend. Every gem has heard of the rebellion and how they could even recruit the gem who was made to destroy the-"

"I SAID, STOP, PEARL!" Lapis yelled, eyes wide with fury.

Pearl started in fear and recoiled. "I-I'm so sorry, I spoke out of line, I-I… I'm sorry I offended you, your clarity."

Lapis' eyes narrowed and whispered, "Don't call me 'clarity'. Besides, you're not sorry, you're scared of me." She then sliced off the drill with a violent slash of water and made a water hand hold it.

"O-Of course." Pearl said, bowing her head. She waited til Connie and Lapis had walked ahead to follow.

"Lapis?" Connie whispered. "Are you alright?"

"No." Lapis whispered sharp as ice.

"Oh, this is great! We are using the same item that started this to end it! I am so clever!" Peridot laughed. Pearl sat nearby, holding a hammer. She glanced up at the water tower where Lapis sat on top of and ran up.

"I've completed this task, Lapis! Shall I start another order?" She called.

Lapis glared down and landed in front of her. "Yeah. I order you to leave me alone, and not talk to me."

Pearl watched her walked past and frowned. She went back to Connie and whispered, "I did something wrong. Lapis isn't happy, she doesn't want to talk to me…. Amethyst usually gets over it in minutes when we mention her wrongs, why isn't Lapis?"

"Lapis isn't Amethyst, Pearl. Just because she has a similar sense of humor, doesn't mean she's the same. Besides, Amethyst must be reminded every day she's different, Lapis isn't. You stepped over a line, she hates her past." Connie sighed.

Pearl glanced over at Lapis, who was now talking to Peridot and Jasper, looking upset. Jasper and Peri glared at Pearl and Jasper pounded her fist in her hand in warning. "Now it seems even the rest are upset."

"That's because they're protective of the team, so am I. You anger Lapis, you anger us too." Connie said with a firm look. "You made her feel bad."

"But I apologized-"

"You were scared, you forced that out on instinct, that wasn't a real apology." Connie explained.

"Well… Well… You're all twerps! Simple, wrong and revolting twerps!" Pearl growled in a tantrum. "You're useless!"

Peridot watched and glanced at Lapis. "Are you sure you don't want us to have a talk with her?"

"Yes." Lapis growled sharply. "She needs to know what she's done."

Later, Connie watched Pearl angrily mess with the drill, mumbling to herself, clearly still upset about Lapis' silence.

"Um, is everything going okay up there?" Connie called up.

"I just… feel so small, and bad." Pearl said softly. Her finger slipped to a wrong button, making the thing go haywire, spinning around dangerously. "Ah! No! No!" The gem cried. She then flung off to the ground. Connie gasped and ran to the drill. She inhaled and then narrowed her eyes before leaping up and lifting onto the controls.

"Wait!" Pearl squawked. She tried to run to Connie and the drill, but her leash got caught on a piece of metal.

"Come… on!" Connie moaned, trying to stop the drill, but she couldn't. Then, a unsuspecting Lapis walked around the corner and saw the drill coming for her. "What-" Lapis gasped.

"Lapis!" Pearl cried out in fear for the gem. This gem wasn't Amethyst, but she had grown to care for Lapis from the desire that she was like her. She saw the drill about to smash the woman and she gave a yell, ripping the leash off. Pearl tackled Lapis to the ground, pushing her to safety. Lapis panted and glanced over with a sigh of relief, seeing Connie slide down the frozen drill. She then looked back at Pearl who seemed to be looking worried, checking if she was hurt.

"Um..." Lapis whispered, confused. Pearl blushed and fell off the woman, embarrassed.

Connie, meanwhile, lay on the ground, nearly knocked unconscious and very dizzy. Lapis gasped and ran to her, helping her up. Pearl followed.

"Oh! Um, I… I didn't know you would freeze it, from the shock and…" Pearl brushed off her skirt, tightening it in nevoenss. "it was a accident!"

"It's alright, we know you didn't start the drill on purpose." Connie said.

Pearl nodded slowly. "Right… that…"

Lapis glanced at her.

"OH MY STARS! Are you hurt?! How could I let this happen?! I'm the worst!" Peridot moaned, squishing Connie's face in her hands as she checked for scratches or scrapes.

"I'm fine." Connie mumbled with a grin.

Jasper clenched her fist and turned to Pearl. "Stop hurting my friends!"

"Wait! It was a accident!" Connie cried, running in front of Pearl.

Peridot frowned. "Well, now we'll rebuild it, stronger, with seat belts, pillows, airbags…" She trailed on while Connie turned to Lapis.

"Are you alright? That was close." Connie murmured. "It's a good thing Pearl saved you."

"Yes, it is! You were almost hurt! You need to be more careful." Pearl said strictly.

Lapis glared at her. "So what? I told you not to talk to me."

Pearl's cheeks turned pink in anger. "I need you to listen to me!" She slammed her hand on her recorder. "Log date 7112. This planet is annoying and wrong. These Twerps are all made for a purpose and denied it." Lapis glared at her. "But… then again, so did I. I'm a servant, something made to just stand there and look pretty. Yet I've trained in the sword, devolved emotions, tried to fight the rebellion, and failed…. I have, according to Connie, 'stepped over a line' with the Lapis Lazuli when I didn't mean to. I thought she felt pride in what she was made for, not pain. However, since that is the case, I won't bring it up again unless requested to…. I wasn't allowed to show feelings in Homeworld, but here, I am a free gem in saying: I'm… sorry. End log." The tape clicked off and Pearl held it close.

Connie had watched and whispered: "That was so amazing, Pearl!"

Lapis glanced at Pearl. "... Thank you…" She said quickly. She walked past and suddenly, a wing came out and splashed Pearl in the face. Lapis gave a cheerful giggle and turned with smirk. "That's for making me feel dumb."

Pearl was wringing out her hair, and huffed in anger, holding back a smile.


	73. Do You Remember Me? (Author story)

**Hey guys! This is my first attempt**

 **at something completely origanal for this story, I'd rather post it on here so more people can see it and not be confused on where to find it. Tell me what you think! Also, currently working on**

 **a image of this au's Connie to post on Amino, since I haven't posted anything yet. So be ready for that!**

13 1/4 years before the events of Gem Glow:

Doug was near a nervous breakdown when he stepped out the cave. Today was his first time leaving his baby girl, Connie, with the Crystal Temps. He had taught Lapis everything, and tried to teach the others the same. Peri and Jasper didn't get it as well, but they had motherly instincts for certain.

"Wave bye-bye to your daddy, Connie!" Lapis said, holding Connie in her arms and her baby bag in the crook of one. The baby only gave a tiny gurgle, reaching her arms to her father.

"I'll only be gone for twenty minutes, you guys, I have to file out some reports they threw on me last minute. Lapis, you have the phone?"

Lapis gave a strange smile. "Er, yep!"

"Okay, just call me if she starts crying, or needs fed, or has gas. She likes her applesauce, so you can give her a spoonful of that if she gets too angry. Oh, and if she-"

"We got the kid handed, old man." Jasper replied, leaning against the cave entrance.

Doug frowned. "I thought you were older."

"Listen, you're gonna be late, just go already." Jasper moaned.

Doug gave a small nod and looked at his daughter, she was so precious, so fragile… For a split-second he honestly wondered if this was the last time he would see her, considering he was putting aliens in charge of her.

"Bye-bye, Pumpkin, see you soon!" Doug sniffed slightly. Jasper rolled her eyes. "Temps, take good care of her!"

He drove off and Lapis waved goodbye.

She turned to Connie with a smile. "We're gonna have so much fun, aren't we, Connie?"

Connie gave a giggle.

"Peri! Come say hi to Connie!" Lapis called, knocking on the temple door. It glowed slightly and Peridot glared at Lapis, then looked at Connie.

"Hello Yellow-" Peridot paused. "...gemed… human."

Connie gurgled.

"I see you your speaking has not improved." Peridot said bluntly. "I hope that will go better for you in the future." She turned her back to them. "Good day, human."

Lapis, annoyed, blew a bang out of her face. "Peri, do you want to hang out with us?" She asked in a sugary sweet voice, Connie reaching out for Peri.

Peridot turned slightly. "No, Lazuli. I do not, I'd much prefer to be alone."

"Great. We can be alone together." Jasper said firm.

"But Jasper-"

"Alone. Together." Jasper growled, silencing her.

Lapis beamed and pulled Peridot outside with her. "Come on! Connie likes being outside."

"You know who else liked being outside? My Diamond." Peridot muttered.

Jasper grabbed the gem's wrist. "Peri," She growled. "watch your tongue. For the last time, Connie is Connie, and she's not going anywhere, we agreed on this."

Lapis glanced between the two.

Peridot gave a tiny hiss under her breath.

Connie suddenly gave a sneeze on the beach and Peridot, who sat on the other side of the beach, scooted even further away.

"The kid sneezed…." Jasper whispered.

The baby gave a tiny cough.

"Lapis… Connie's doing something…."

Lapis turned from the water, and walked off the top of it. "What's she doing?"

"She's coughing and sneezing, and-"

Connie suddenly gave a gag before puking on the sand.

"IT THREW UP IT'S INSIDES!" Peri screeched in horror. "So… does that mean…"

"Don't even say, Peri." Lapis growled. She shushed the now crying baby. "Hey, hey, it's okay, Connie, it's okay!"

"Why did she do that…?" Jasper asked in a dry voice.

"She didn't mean to, I think she's sick, rember? Humans get that way at times." Lapis answered.

"Lapis, she isn't pointy and can't break, clearly." Peridot said, walking up.

Jasper rolled her eyes. "We've lived here for thousands of years and you still can't tell the difference between a stick and sick."

"They are too similar not to be a coincidence!" Peridot cried.

"What do we do, Laz? We have to help her." Jasper said. Peridot nodded.

"I would know if someone hadn't shot a ray gun at Doug during my lessons." Lapis glared at Peri who shrunk a little bit in embarrassment.

"It was only on stun, and I didn't think it would hurt him a lot." Peridot insisted. "What helps organic things like the child get better?"

"Well…medicine, but I don't have any… and I lost the phone Doug gave me…" Lapis blushed.

"You what?! What are we supposed to do now?!" Jasper yelled, making Lapis flinch.

"We go and get Doug! He will know how to fix this!" Lapis said firmly. "I'll get him, Jasper… go find something to help us!"

Jasper nodded.

"And I'll go into the temple-" Peridot was interrupted by Lapis giving baby Connie to her.

"Wha…" Peri held the baby straight in front of her like she was some bomb. "Lazuli, take it back."

"No, someone has to take care of Connie until we get back." Lapis insisted.

Peridot sputtered incoherently. "M-Me?! But I can't care for a human! Besides, you know how I feel about it-"

"Peridot, you are more gentle than me, and Lapis can fly, you're the only one who can care for her. We won't be too long." Jasper said, ruffling Connie's hair before going to the cave entrance.

"And… if I fail?"

Lapis and Jasper turned to her, both looked serious and stern.

"You won't have to worry about the kid then." Jasper whispered.

Peridot gulped, and Connie gave a whimper.

"See you soon, P." Jasper then went out the entrance, leaving Connie to Peridot, Lapis had already flown away.

Peridot slowly placed Connie on the ground and picked up the bag placed by the baby's father. It would have everything she would need.

The older gem smoothed out a yellow blanket and placed Connie down on it. The baby looked at her exspectly.

"There. Now, I need you to sit there, and not do anything until the others get back, do you understand me, child?"

Connie tilted her head in confusion. "Goo?"

"How dare you insult me!" Peridot gasped. "I know we each dislike one another, but there is no need to criticizes me! I.. I'm doing my best!" The gem then sat down next to the girl, who crawled to her. Peridot tried to push her away, but she was persistent.

"What, baby? What do you want?" Peridot asked it, lifting Connie up to her face.

Connie looked curiously at Peridot and slowly reached for her hair. Peridot winced as she pulled on the star shape and frowned.

"I hate you."

Connie gave a giggle and hugged her face.

"Baby, did you not hear me, I-"

The baby gave a snore and had fallen asleep while hugging her face.

Peridot put her down on the blanket and touched the gem on the girl's chest. She had already discussed not doing it, but she wanted Yellow Diamond back so bad! Why did this thing exist?! Yellow Diamond was so much better than this child!

Connie suddenly started crying in her sleep.

"Baby?"

The baby woke up, sobbing. She looked scared. The baby then pointed at a pink toy nearby, trying to explain.

"Pink? What…. Oh." Peridot then grabbed up the child, and started to cradle her. "You may not know who it was… but you were right to assume they were bad… Is that because you are new? Are some memories still here, very slightly?" Peridot hugged the baby close, tears coming. "You will outgrow these memories, and won't remember them when you're older… but for now… do you remember me?"

Connie looked confused, but she grabbed her gem and smiled. Peridot didn't see the gem glow as Lapis had flown in with Doug with the medicine.

The baby didn't say it, but the gem inside her did, Of course I remember you….


	74. The Choice

Connie was fast asleep, snuggled up in her blanket and gently snoring. Her head rested on a open book and her bedroom light hadn't been turned on when the shadowy figure entered the room.

"Hey, kid, wake up." Jasper hissed. Connie gave a mumble and _slept_ on. "Kid? Kid!"

"Mmm… Jasper?" Connie whispered, her eyes opening slowly. "Is it morning?"

"Nope! It's midnight!" Jasper said cheerfully. "Happy Birthday, kiddo!"

"Thanks Jasper." Connie beamed. "Why did you wake me up so early though? I need eight hours of sleep, you know. If I don't get those hours, I'll be much less efficient in battles and conver-"

"I came to tell you more about me, and about Homeworld, like I should have before Garnet and her team came." Jasper said. Connie blinked in surprise.

"Wait, are you serious?" Connie gasped, diamonds in her eyes.

"Yeah, you want to know how I joined your mom and the Temps?"

"Of course I do!" Connie cried, wondering if it would be anything like the fanfics she had secretly wrote.

Jasper smirked and sat down on the bed, the thing sagged and Connie slid right onto her. Connie grinned and Jasper gave a cough, "So… it all began about… 5,000 years ago, when Pink Diamond was watching over the Earth, her planet… I was there, as her guard, along with a Agate."

In Connie imagination, the stage came. They were in a cloud area, surrounded by gems of all kinds. And there, in all her mighty power was Pink Diamond, sitting in her palanquin. Outside, stood Jasper, her Jasper, and beside her stood another. They fiercely guarded the Diamond. "I… um… was kinda despised for being over-cooked, but Pink Diamond found me useful, placing me as a guard alongside the Agates."

Jasper was waiting and turned to see a small blue figure approach. "Pink Diamond was expecting a Sapphire, a rare gem, to tell her the future. Of course, that was the Sapphire that would eventually make Garnet. I saw behind her were three Ruby guards, all nervous." Jasper nodded to them and two acknowledged the gesture while the one on the end was too distracted by staring at the beautiful Sapphire. Jasper heard Sapphire and Pink Diamond speaking to each other, about how they should flee, for the rebels were coming, and how Saphire's, along with two of her Ruby guards and most of the gems present's physical form would be destroyed, and she taken to be shattered. Jasper turned to see Saphire walk out.

Sapphire stood next to her Ruby guard and smiled. "I truly do wish I could be helpful to this fight, and my Diamond."

"You are being helpful." Ruby said, glancing at her.

"No, no, I mean-" Saphire was interrupted by a sudden booming voice.

"PINK! STOP THIS MADNESS, NOW. WE DID NOT AGREE TO HARM THIS PLANET!" Yellow Diamond yelled, stepping out from the clouds and growing to her full height. Beside her, stood her Peridot. Ruby stepped protectivly in front of Sapphire and Jasper made her helmet.

"Yellow?" Jasper turned and was shocked to see her Diamond look torn at after hearing her sister's voice.

"Pink…" Yellow sighed. "I can't let you hurt this place, you need to leave, do you hear me?!"

"Go, go my Diamond!" Jasper yelled. Pink Diamond gave a sad sigh and retreated, leaving Jasper to fight. The Peridot lunged at her, using her metal powers to slam Jasper to the ground before snapping her head to Saphire. The other rubies had fused with rhe one protecting her and gave a moan when Peridot sliced through them, poofing two. The last and lone Ruby looked at Sapphire, frightened by the destabilizing of gems around her. Jasper struggled, trying to get up. A Peridot, beating her!

Sapphire turned to Ruby and whispered, "I suppose this is the end. Goodbye."

Ruby watched Yellow Diamond walk up with a sollom face, her hand glowing. "NO!" Ruby yelled, and she ran to Sapphire, pushing her away. Jasper watched open mouthed as a new gem appeated. She was a woman with poofy pink and blue hair, and the same colors went along her mix-match clothes. The gems that were left gasped and Peridot's metal weaked in shock. Jasper lunged out, making Peridot fall back in fear. Yellow Diamond looked almost disgusted but her exsprsion softened when Pink Diamond approached. Pink glanced at Yellow with a suprised exspresion. The new fusion, Garnet, suddenly turned to Peridot and smirked.

"Guess I can be useful." Garnet grinned. "Thank you, Ruby." Jasper then saw the fusion lunged at Peridot and poofed her. Jasper gave a start in shock and was… almost… angry at the fusion. She had hurt a gen who was protecting who she was made for.

"HEY!" Jasper growled and then covered her mouth when all eyes looked at her. Garnet narrowed her eyes while Yellow's looked distrustful, but surprised.

Yellow gave a growl and her hand glowed. She suddenly destabilized Garnet before the crowd's eyes, then nearly all the crowd, besides the lone Jasper and Pink Diamond. The leader scooped up her ally. She gave one last look at Pink before leaping away. Jasper felt the urge to follow them but just then, Ruby and Sapphire reformed.

"Sapphire, you… you didn't tell me you could do this." Pink started. "You were so powerful."

"I didn't know." Sapphire said smoothly. Ruby looked between the two.

"Yellow has fled… and I need you to hunt her down." Pink Diamond demanded. Ruby and Sapphire glanced at each other with amazment. Pink Diamond had seen their power, togther, and hadn't despised it. "You, go with this Ruby and Sapphire, and find the rebellion." Pink Diamond was looking straight at Jasper when she said, "And if you try to do otherwise then hunt it down, I'm sorry to say, you will be punished."

Jasper gulped in fear, sensing all the gems looking at her.

Later, Ruby, Sapphire and Jasper were searching for the rebellion on Earth. Jasper felt at home, while Ruby and Sapphire, who were being protected by the Quartz, were looking amazed at their surroundings.

"I sure hope we can do that again, or Pink Diamond will be upset." Ruby said.

Sapphire gave a nod. "I never got a chance to thank you, Ruby."

"Oh, er, uh…" Ruby blushed and Jasper smirked a smile at her, "Oh ho ho! Someone wants to fuse again!" Ruby blushed harder and ran up to Jasper, and playfully punched her. Sapphire smiled, lifting her skirts away from the fire on the ground.

"So. How… did you two do that?" Jasper whispered. Ruby glanced at Sapphire.

"I-I don't know. I just couldn't let that Peridot hurt Sapphire, so I acted." Ruby shrugged.

Sapphire looked away from the two and said, "I didn't foresee it coming. You changed the track of fate, Ruby." She looked back at Jasper and frowned slightly. "But why did you get upset when we… she poofed the Peridot?"

"Um… I just saw that look in her eyes, she was scared, and I have seen millions of Peridots get scared, but that fear wasn't for her own well being, I could tell it was for Yellow Diamond." Jasper explained. "I've never seen a selfless Peridot before."

"Neither have I…" Sapphire said in a sigh. "It's because they don't exist." She then said sharply. Jasper glanced down at the little gem who had a neutral face. "Jasper… she'll say no."

"Who will? To what?"

But Sapphire said no more.

Later, they soon found a cave to stay in. They all sat down and Jasper felt rather awkward as she was much taller than the others.

"So… er, have you two ever fused before?" Jasper whispered.

Sapphire shook her head. "I've never fused before. Certainly not with a Ruby."

Ruby sighed softly and surprisingly said: "I've never had a third eye before."

Sapphire smiled with a laugh and showed her own one eye, that was happy. "I've never had more than one!"

"Can you two even fight without each other?" Jasper smirked. Ruby made a small gauntlet while Sapphire suddenly froze Jasper's feet to the ground. Ruby grinned and ran up, leaping to Jasper's head and pounding it. Jasper grabbed Ruby by her right arm and Sapphire by her left. The two looked at each other like they were partners in crime.

"Easy, pipsqueaks." Jasper smirked, making Ruby laugh a gruff laugh and attempted to punch her again. "I gotta admit, for two short, weak gems, that's pretty cool. I mean, you can stop a lot of strong gems, together."

She put them down and glanced between them, "Will you… er, can you fuse again?"

Ruby and Sapphire looked surprised and glanced at each other.

"We can try." Ruby smiled sheepishly.

Jasper watched with a smile as Ruby took Sapphire's hand and led her outside. The gem softly started to sing: " _It was quite strange, I'd never have thought, for them to be the victory Homeworld sought. She looked so bold, yet tender and taunt, she is the victory that Homeworld has sought."_

Meanwhile, Ruby and Sapphire were laying on the grass, and Jasper soon joined them, they were all stargazing.

" _Oh...um. Well I just can't stop thinking._ " Ruby softly sang.

" _So...um. Did you say I was different?_ " Sapphire sang with a blush.

Jasper glanced at the two and saw they were both blushing while looking at each other.

" _And you hadn't before?_ " Ruby sang.

" _Of course not._ " Sapphire looked up at her. " _When would I have ever?_ "

" _This is so wrong,_ " Ruby started.

" _No, you're right with me._ " Sapphire sang.

" _But we shouldn't be together!_ " Ruby sang with tears in her eyes.

" _What about her?_ " Jasper interrupted. The two gems looked at her and sang together, " _What about who?"_

"That person you made, that person will last forever…" Jasper sang.

Sapphire suddenly started humming a beautiful tune. Jasper tilted her head. What a pretty song, She thought.

Ruby started to hum too and they hesitantly took hands. Then, they danced. With each twirl they grew happier and soon, Garnet was made. Jasper wrapped her arm around the fusion and smirked, "Nice to see you, pipsqueaks."

"It's Garnet now. We-I don't appreciate you teasing me." Garnet smiled back,

"Okay, okay." Jasper grinned, she then made her helmet. "Now show me what you can really do."

"Gladly!" Garnet smirked.

"I trained with Garnet all day, and we became friends, then again, we already were before." Jasper narrated over.

Garnet then pushed Jasper to the ground and smiled, "I am stronger than you!"

"Someday, G, I'm gonna say that to you…" Jasper smirked. "But for now…" she kicked her leg into Garnet's making the gem lose her balance. The fusion gave a cry, rolling down a hill of cherry blossoms. Jasper laughed and then realized Garnet hadn't come up to mash her to the ground. "Hey G, you okay?"

"Get away from her-me!" She heard Garnet yell. Jasper made her helmet and slid down the hill, quickly. She gave a growl when the Peridot held her pole to her gem.

"Peridot, wait." They all heard and a smaller Yellow Diamond walked out. She was slightly taller than Jasper at the moment. The Diamond looked at Jasper, then at Garnet. "I've never seen a two-kind fusion… You could be useful, you both could be useful to our cause." Yellow said. Peridot glanced between them as if she couldn't tell which massive stranger she hated most.

Garnet unfused, Ruby and Sapphire holding hands in her place.

"We don't work with rebels!" Ruby growled. "Were here to capture you!"

Yellow Diamond smirked and whispered coldy, "I'd love to see you two try."

Sapphire meanwhile was firm and she gripped Ruby's hand harder. "Leave us out of your rebellion. We wish to be together."

"And you can be." Yellow Diamond said.

The two small gems glanced at each other and Sapphire suddenly gave a sigh, "You truly don't know what things will happen to you…." She suddenly grabbed Ruby's hand and they fused. Garnet looked at Jasper and gave a gentle wave, "We'll meet again, I'm sure."

Jasper looked at her dumbfounded. "Garnet, you can't leave!"

"I can and will." Garnet replied. "Homeworld needs me, I'll win this war for my Diamond, not her. Will you?"

Jasper stuttered when Yellow gave a growl. Her hands shot out destabilizing powers, but Garnet leapt up into a tree. The woman glanced down at Jasper and smiled, "Sapphire told you'd I'd say no." She leapt away.

Jasper attempted to run after her, to plead for her to stay, but Peri grabbed her arm.

"The fusion is gone. Will you join the Temps? You're free here, I promise you as a once servent myself." Peridot smiled.

Jasper looked at her, then at Yellow Diamond. "But Garnet, she's my friend-"

"That's not how it works around this planet. She made her choice." Yellow Diamond snapped sharply and then softened. "Now make yours…"

Connie lay in bed, eyes wide. "And…?" She whispered.

"What do you think I chose, rascal?" Jasper chuckled, ruffling her head.

Connie giggled and then sighed softly. "I wish… I wish Garnet would've joined, maybe things would be different."

"She made her choice…." Jasper muttered. She had stopped smiling. "But… part of me wishes she had stayed too."


	75. Connie's Birthday

It was the warm month of July, it was a very special month indeed. It was July 9th, Connie's birthday. Despite Connie not wishing to stop work on the drill just because of her, the Temps were certain to celebrate her birth this year.

"Pearl, I demand you have fun with us!" Peridot called.

Pearl frowned and huffed, adjusting a flower crown she was wearing, "It isn't fun for me! I'm working on the drill, keeping you Temps focused! Sometimes I worry about you all, you let your feelings for each other get in the way of work."

Jasper glared at her and Pearl scampered away.

"Don't listen to her, Connie." Lapis smiled happily, adjusting the girl's cream dress.

"Yeah, you've grown a lot this year!" Jasper said.

Suddenly, Doug's car drove up and Steven ran out.

"Connie!" He cried.

"Steven!" The girl beamed and he tackled her in a hug. He swung her around surpriselgly and Connie then saw she had to look up at him, and his voice had grown deeper.

Connie tilted her head. "I… you're so tall!"

Steven gave a laugh, "Yeah! I've been growing a lot lately, then again, it's been a few weeks since you last saw me, so are you surprised?"

Connie realized how tiny she was now compared to him. He had had a growth spurt during the many weeks she hadn't seen him, being too busy to hang out, he was meant to be this tall, just had a longer time to grow. She was up to his forearm now. He had been so small before. "I… um… I am."

Doug walked up and glared at Steven until he moved out of the way of his girl. The man hugged her and gently kissed the top of her head, "Happy birthday, sweetheart."

"Thanks dad." Connie smiled.

"Oh, you're so big." Doug whispered, bending down to her. "I seems like only yesterday you were a baby in my arms, now you're fourteen!"

Steven gasped in shock. "WHHAAAAT?!" He turned to Connie, "Connie, you're fourteen?"

Connie blushed and nodded.

"I'm only twelve! And you're older than me! I mean, I thought maybe a few months, but not two years!" Steven cried.

"Yes, well she is more mature than you." Doug said, "I had no idea you were 12, Steven, at least, not before." He took out a light rose colored scrapbook and Steven saw it had a pale yellow diamond in the center. Beneath it was 'Connie Diamond Universe' in white text. Doug flipped, showing picture of a adorable baby Connie, with her brown hair framing her face, giggling. She blew out the candles. "Baby," they flipped the page and showed a toddler version of her with twin pigtails wearing her birthday crown and cape. "Toddler," They flipped again, showing a Connie who was a bit older than before. "Adolesce," he flipped again, four times, and realized they were all of Connie with that same height, the only difference was her clothes. Doug frowned. "I guess you stagnated, sweetheart."

Connie looked surprised and Steven glanced at Doug. "Er, Doug? Can you show me where the bathroom is?"

"You know where-" Doug started.

"Please!" Steven cried.

A few minutes later, Steven and Doug had gone inside and were talking on the window seat. Connie was walking to the door to grab a drink but hestatied putting her hand on the door handle when she heard, "She's not going to grow up? At all?"

It was Steven. Connie slid under the open window and listened:

"I… don't know honestly, Steven. Connie is a gem, and I've known the gems since I was twenty two. I have learned that they don't grow like humans. They were never children, and had no parents, unless you count the Diamonds but… Well, Connie is half human, so maybe she's different… We just have to wait." Doug sighed.

Steven looked down, solom. "Oh."

"Um, but… we're human beings together, Steven. I don't want you to forget that." Doug said. They high-fived. Connie snuck away, worried and upset.

A few moments later, Connie held her birthday banner, looking up solemnly. Lapis flew down and looked concerned. "Connie? Are you alright?"

"I'm too small…" Connie whispered.

"Well, of course, no human can hang a banner without a ladder!" Lapis giggled, taking the banner. She flew up with the first corner and shape-shifted her arm to the other corner and hooked it on the barn. Connie watched with interest. Lapis then turned to her. "How does it look?"

"Er, perfect!" Connie smiled.

Doug walked up then and Connie turned to him.

"There she is, my birthday girl!" Doug smiled.

"Oh, hi Dad. Did you need me?" Connie asked.

He handed her the girl's birthday crown and cape. "Okay honey, you wait in the barn, put your crown and cape on and we'll get started!" He took her to the barn and closed the door, leaving Connie alone in the darkness. The girl glanced at it, a symbol of her childhood, her childness. She threw it aside and curled her hands into fists.

She soon heard a knock and her dad called out, "We're all ready, pumpkin!"

She opened the door to see Lapis holding a cake in the shape of a diamond. "SUPRISE!" Her family and friend called but then saw Connie step out. She was much taller, and looked older. Her hair was longer and her chest had grown too, making Lapis quickly zoom into the house and then come out, and threw the girl a cardigan.

"Quick, put that on!" Lapis called. Connie frowned but did as she was told, it concealing her womanly growth, making Jasper and Doug less likely to faint at the sight of her all grown up. Connie hesitantly stepped out, getting used to her new form.

"What happened to you?" Jasper whispered.

"I don't know! It's a scientific phenomenon." Connie smiled, her voice slightly deeper. "I suppose I just grew a little bit."

"Are you… okay?" Peridot asked. She made Connie bend down so she could feel her head for a fever.

"Wow! You're so tall, Connie!" Steven said in his now normal sounding deeper voice.

"Isn't it great?" Connie laughed, hugging him. She leaned her head on his shoulder, finally being able to hug him properly. Doug looked between the two, they were both grown up! His baby was only a bit shorter than he was! He give a cough, interrupting the hug. "Er, who wants cake!?"

"Nice save." Jasper whispered, high-fiving him.

Soon, Steven gave Connie a tiny little present.

"Oh! Thank you!" Connie cried, wondering what could be inside such a small box. She was about to untie the bow when Steven stopped her.

"Oh, you don't have to untie that. It's just a box made to look like I spent a lot of time wrapping it." Steven grinned.

Connie laughed and opened the top. She gasped and took out a necklace that was a soft brown leather cord with a shimmering light yellow shell tied on. "Oh, Steven-"

"I know it looks simple, but it's a shell I collected on the day we first met! D-Do you like it?" Steven asked hopefully.

"I love it!" Connie giggled. She tried to tie it around her neck, but it started to choke her a little.

"Oh, it doesn't fit anymore." Steven sighed.

Connie gave a small smile, and wrapped it around her wrist. "It can work like this!"

"Oh, yeah." Steven smiled.

Later, Connie, Lapis, Steven and Peri were playing badminton.

"It's coming!" Peridot cried.

"I got it!" Steven smiled and hit it back.

Peridot smiled and called, "You're improving!"

Lapis hit it back again, but it landed in a tree.

"No worries, I'll get it!" Steven called, running to the tree. Connie watched him grab it from the tree, but soon felt sweat coming as her arm shrunk. She quickly made it long again before anyone could see.

Later, Connie, Steven, Jasper and Peri were dancing while Lapis controlled the music. She saw Connie and Steven and smiled, "This one goes out to the birthday girl, and her best friend." She played a slow dance song, making Jasper glare at her.

Connie and Steven started to dance and Steven gave a laugh, "We're both grown up. And you're older than me!"

"Yeah…" Connie sighed, sweating.

"It's so funny how big we both are!" Steven said with a grin. Connie looked up at him with a nervous smile, "Funny good, or funny bad?"

"Funny good." Steven laughed. Connie leaned her head on his chest, sweating and her eyes wide.

"Connie looks like she's having fun." Peridot smiled, not seeing the utter pain in the girl's face.

"Yep. All thanks to me." Lapis smirked. Jasper gave a mutter in anger.

Connie suddenly pulled away from Steven. "Er, exscuse me, I have to go to the ladies room!" She ran to the house, and shrunk back to her normal height. "Urgh… this is exsaughting… I just have to keep this up for the rest of my life and then Steven will be-" She stopped seeing Lapis and Doug had dropped their forks while eating pieces of cake.

"Connie!" Lapis cried. "What are you doing?!"

"What are you," Connie aged up, and her voice deepened. "doing?"

"Oh, thank goodness, it's just magic!" Doug sighed then looked up. "Wait, Lapis, what is she doing with magic?!"

"Connie, please listen." Lapis whispered, grabbing her hand. "You can't stretch yourself this much!"

"Yes I can!" Connie growled, ripping her hand away. "Steven's going to be a adult one day, and I'll just be some silly little kid following him around! W-What if he doesn't want to hang out with me anymore? What if… we aren't friends when he grows up and I don't?"

"You could get seriously hurt if you stay in a form you're not for too long." Lapis sighed.

Connie shook her head. "Well, I'm half-human! So… so… Don't tell me what to do!" Lapis flinched in sudden fear at her yell and Connie realized she had let her anger overcome her own senses.

"Connie, this isn't like you…" Doug whispered. "You're starting to sound like... your mother."

Connie blinked in suprise and saw her hands were fists. She then ran away in anger.

Later, Connie and Steven sat on a blanket, looking at the stars.

"That one looks like Catcopter!" Steven laughed. Connie glanced at him.

"Huh?" Connie asked.

"Catcopter!" Steven cried. "Now you make one!"

Connie looked up and pointed to the stars. "That one's a… circle constellation."

"Er, yeah! Yeah, it is!" Steven laughed. He seemed to be concerned and saw Connie sweating. "Are you okay? You look kinda sick, are you sick?"

"N-no! I'm fine!" Connie said nervously.

"You sure?... Dad said that teens like us can get a bit sick feeling at times, but we can get through it together! We can do everything together now that you're growing up with me!" Steven cried, hugging her. Connie got overwhelmed, and melted into her clothes, appearing to have disappered.

"Connie!?" Steven gasped in shock. He moved her dress and sweater to reveal Connie had turned into a little baby. "Aw! You're so cute!... Wait, what's going on?!" Steven cried.

Baby Connie looked at herself and saw her tiny feet and hands. "Wha?" The baby gasped. She started to cry.

Lapis was soon cradling Connie as she sobbed, not saying, but was thinking she was so happy to be holding her adorable baby again. "So… what happened again?"

"We were just sitting there talking and then-"

"She turned back into a infant?" Peridot whispered, glaring at Lapis, for she kind of wanted to hold the baby too.

"Why didn't you listen, Connie? Stretching out your body can have serious side effects." Lapis sighed. She rolled her eyes and finally gave her to Peri.

"There, there Connie, there is no reason to cry." Peridot shushed. The baby kept sobbing. "Hm… reading her the dictionary would always make her calm."

"Yeah, cause she fell asleep to it. Watch and learn, folks" Jasper chuckled, taking Connie away from Peri. She looked Connie straight in the eye and yelled, "STOP IT!" Connie stopped for a moment but then started sobbed harder.

"Ok, give her to me! She's her daddy's girl, aren't you?" Doug said, bouncing the baby after taking her.

Steven and Doug soon sat in the house while the gems planned what else they could try outside.

"And then the girl saved all her friends, and they all lived happily ever after." Doug finished reading the fariytale, and Connie still cried. Steven looked worried. Doug frowned.

Steven was trying to play patty cake with her, but she refused, her face pinched up, secretly trying to shapeshift back. "How could the Temps not know what to do?"

"I only let Connie go live with them once they kind of knew how to raise a child. I was the one who truly raised her as a baby, and I made sure they knew how to act like mothers to her before they got to spend a night near her." Doug said with a smile. "I would never trust my girl with anyone that I hadn't taught or knew how to care for a regular human…. Fariytales always used to calmed her down."

"How do we change her back? Will she be a baby forever?" Steven whispered. "I can't understand my best friend anymore?"

"Um… Listen Steven, I think I should just take you home. I'll let you know if we get any breakthroughs but-"

Baby Connie suddenly looked heartbroken and talked babytalk frantically, tears in her eyes, making Steven glance back. "No. Please don't take me home!"

"Are you sure?" Doug whispered.

"Absolutely dude!" Steven said, giving him a thumbs up. He looked back at Connie. "It's okay, Connie. Even if you're a baby, you're more mature than me! I don't care what age you look like. We can still hang out, right? Your dad will teach me exactly how to care for you, and I will! And besides," The boy winked at her. "Jam Buds stick together."

Connie stopped crunching her face and gave a happy coo and grabbed his finger with her tiny hands.

"She stopped crying." Steven whispered with stars in her eyes.

"Really?" Doug asked. "How interesting."

Suddenly, the door cracked open, and the Temps walked in. Lapis gave a small smile, "Can we please cuddle her again?"

"Sure." Steven smiled, Connie reaching her hands up to them.

The next morning, Steven woke up in the tent, he and Connie had fallen asleep quickly that night. He gave a yawn, brushing the sleep out of his eyes. "Morning, little-" He looked over to see the tent only had him and a yellow sweater. "Connie?... Connie! Oh no! Did the magic make you disappear?! Connie!" He bowed his head. "I'll never-"

"Steven!" He turned to see a blushing Connie, back to normal. She wore her shell necklace, it fit her perfectly, the shell siting gently on her gem. "See? It isn't choking me anymore."

Steven gave a gasp and brushed away his tears. "Connie!" He tackled her into a hug, knocking them out of the tent. They laughed togther and Steven helped her up. Connie brushed herself off. "I'm so sorry I lied. It will never happen again. I just wanted you to know I'm still mature, I wanted to show you I could grow older with you. We could stay friends if I could…"

"What? Stay friends? Whoever said we wouldn't be BFFS?"

"I just-"

"Jam buds stays together. Stevonnie stays together, a shield protects its sword, right? I am your knight after all, my ligue."

Connie smiled. "And I am yours, my ligue." She then noticed she was now as tall as Steven's shirt sleeve!

"Oh my gosh! Steven, look!" Connie cried. Steven saw her height and gasped. "You're taller then you were! No magic, right?"

"No magic involved!" Connie grinned. They ran up to her father and the Temps, excited to show her growth.

"Dad! Dad, dad!" Connie cried. He turned and smiled, "What is it, pumpkin?"

"Look! I'm taller!" Said the girl. Doug checked and hugged her, "You really are getting older!"

"Look guys! This is incredible!" Connie yelled, running to show the Temps. They all looked, giving prasies.

"Well, looks like you're gettin stronger kiddo!" Jasper smiled.

"I have to write this down somewhere." Peridot whispered.

"You'll still always be our kid though." Lapis smirked, smushing the girl's face and making her laugh.

Steven watched with a smile, giving a tiny giggle.

 **Hey guys! So, to let you all know, when Steven and Connie first met in this au, Connie and Steven were the heights from the original show, I figured Connie would be that tall, being the daughter of a very tall person. Connie never noticed until this episode, Steven has indeed been growing over the months. Connie in her normal height was at his forearm. Her height now is just below his shirt sleeve. When using her powers, she was up to his shoulder, to where she could lean on it. Steven has the same voice and height as he does when using the magic in the original, but this change is real and permanent. And btw, since we never learn Connie's birthday, I made it the wonderful and amazing Rebecca Sugar's b-day, like how her brother's was Steven. Merry Christmas, I probably won't be back for a bit! Have fun!**


	76. It Was So Useful

The Temps sat on the hill beside the old storage lot, watching the sunrise. Connie sleepily played her violin, laying on Lion, thinking she could stay up. They had worked on the drill all night, and were about to go home. She suddenly heard a prim voice behind her. "Connie, what are you all doing? This isn't very productive."

She turned to Pearl and gave a small smile. "Good morning, Pearl."

"They aren't working on the drill like they need to be. We don't have much time left!"

"We don't know that. Besides, we worked all day, we deserve a tiny break." Connie smiled. Pearl looked sour and adjusted a rose crown on her head that she wore a lot recently. Connie had her violin out and grinned. "Want to help me with some music I'm writing?"

Pearl sighed. "I am familiar with music, but I don't think I'll be any good at Earthen songs."

"Hm, why don't you just try singing with me? Follow along."

Pearl blinked and blushed slightly as Connie started to play.

"Life and death and love and birth and peace and war on the planet Earth. Is thee anything that's worth more than peace and love in the Earth?" Connie sang with a smile and her eyes closed. "Hm, hm, hmm, it is so lonely, so won't you please sing this with me?"

"Connie, please-" Pearl whispered.

"Get the memo, stick with my tempo, and repeat after me!" Connie grinned. "Life and death and love and birth!"

"Life and death and love and birth," Pearl sang with a whisper.

"You have such a pretty voice! Please, don't hide it!" Connie begged. Pearl rolled her eyes before joining Connie in finishing the verse. "And peace, and war on the planet Earth!"

"Incredible!" Connie twirled, and beamed at Pearl. "You should make a song!"

"M-Me?" Pearl asked, glancing around as if she could be talking to someone else.

"Yeah!"

"What would you like it to be about?"

"What would you? It's your song!" Connie said.

"...Hmmm…" Pearl muttered.

Later that morning, Connie, Lapis, Peri, and Jasper sat around a campfire as Pearl sang. "I miss her so much, and she is so so far away… All I can do now, is try to live in this place. And even though I hate you all! ...I suppose you will do. Though I miss her, I will still try to help you!" She finished. Connie clapped. "Perfect!"

"Life and death and love and birth and-" Connie sang.

Lapis pounded on metal with a hammer. "Life and death and love and birth and-"

"Life and death and love and birth and peace and war on the planet Earth." Peridot sang, opening a hatch on a engine.

"Is there anything that's worth more?" Jasper whispered in song.

"Oh, is there anything that's worth more?" Connie sang.

"Is there anything that's worth more, than peace and love on the planet Earth…" Pearl finished.

About a day later, they stood proud in front of the drill. Jasper hit Pearl hard on the back as a sign of trust, but it knocked Pearl to the ground. The thin gem breathed for air while the rest giggled. Connie helped her up with a smile.

"I have to admit, … we may have a chance." Pearl smiled softly.

"Oh! You said we! You consider us a team!" Connie cried.

"I didn't say that." Pearl rolled her eyes and made sure her rose crown was on straight. It was a prized possession of the gem's, but it had started to wilt and dry. "Oh! Oh no, I can't believe I forgot!" She suddenly gasped. "We need the coordinates of the Cluster in order for this to work! Where are we to get those?"

"Hmm… The closest base near us that would have that kind of information would be the long forgotten Diamond Base. However, getting there is near impossible." Peridot said, looking up at the sky.

"A… Diamond base?" Connie said dryly, for once in her life, not feeling ready to go.

"Yes. It is indeed. It has no warp pad and it is on…" Peridot looked up and Connie breathed out in a whisper, "the moon…"

Peridot frowned. "Yes. Why isn't anything clicking with you? Jasper, I told you, humans need to-"

"I'm fine." Connie grunted out. She went over to Lion and sighed. "Um, Lion, we have to go to the moon, would you please make us a warp there?"

Lion gave a moan and stretched, ignoring her.

"Lion, please, we have to. The Cluster will destroy everything! The whole Earth! There will be nothing left. There won't be any more fun times with friends, Lion Lickers, naps-"

Lion then got up with a determined growl, has eyes white with power. Soon, he had all the gems on his back with Connie and Pearl in his mane. He growled and then gave a mighty roar, creating a portal. He leapt in and Connie gave a yell in excitement. "This never gets old!" Next to her, Pearl was screaming. Lion created more portals, increasing speed once he went through. They soon slammed against a solid wall and all got off.

"Ugh! Never again!" Pearl cried, picking off yellow fur from her dress. Connie meanwhile hugged Lion, who was near asleep from all the jumps he had made.

"It's okay, Lion, it's okay. You've earned your naps for the week!" Connie whispered in his ear before kissing his head and walking off. The Temps and Pearl, excluding Connie and Lapis turned on their gems as lights in the dark.

Connie was surprised to find she could breathe here on the moon, either there was concealed oxygen on this base or her gem half was the only thing keeping her from suffocating. "This is the moon…. I never knew a base was up here, of all places!"

Lapis looked around and pressed a random button, a door opened and air sucked out of the base and revealed the surface of the moon. She was quick to close it. "… We're the moon alright."

Connie had started to float up into the air and gasped in surprise. "Look! There truly is zero gravity, even in here! How do you all stay put?"

Peridot gave a squeak in panic. "Connie!" She tried to leap up to get the girl down but landed flat on her face. "Ow."

"Get your face off the floor." Pearl moaned. "Your instincts must've forgotten we are gems? We were made to conquer other planets?" Lapis looked confused. Pearl rolled her eyes. "We adapt to any gravity of any planet."

Connie soon backed into a wall and fell to the ground. The girl looked up at the wall. The girl felt her heart thud. She soon felt a hand on her shoulder and limply got up. She turned to Pearl. "Who is that?"

"That's Pink Diamond." Pearl whispered. Connie looked up at the mural of a small Diamond, holding the Earth in her hand.

The Temps hadn't noticed Connie, they had all grown too distracted.

"If you're her guardians I suggest you…" Pearl stopped speaking and dragging a still mesmerized Connie when she saw what they were looking at. Jasper turned to them, and took Connie's hand, waking the girl up.

"Mom." Connie whispered, looking up at the ginormous woman in the mural. Lapis had flew up and was looking at the face while Peridot had fallen to a sitting position. It was silent for a few moments until a cough interrupted it all.

"This really is old." They turned to Pearl. Connie trotted up to Peri and helped her up while Lapis had shadowy eyes as she landed.

"What do you mean?" Connie asked tentatively.

"All symbolism of Yellow Diamond is gone on Homeworld, we all may have been made to serve our own Diamond, but that all faded away thousands of years ago. Pink Diamond rules all now."

"What?" Connie breathed in surprise.

Peridot tensed and Jasper looked almost… worried. Pearl avoided Jasper and Peri's looks and spoke up, "Look, there's a control panel!"

Connie went after her slowly and Pearl inspected the ground. "Ah… um… ah! Here it is." Pearl touched a certain panel and stairs suddenly came up from the ground, rolling Lion off them.

"Well, come on." Pearl sighed. The others followed. Most walked up the large stairs while Lapis flew beside them. "We are walking in the footsteps of the Diamonds, your mother had to be here at one time, Connie." Connie gave a nod, and kept jumping up the stairs, as if she didn't want to hear it. They entered a room with a mysterious object in the center.

"What is this room?" Connie asked.

"Not important at the moment." Pearl said stiffly and walked on.

Lapis sighed. "This place is kinda freaking me out, can we please hurry?"

They soon reached the top and saw a giant chair, and a giant control panel. Connie stared out the window at space and whispered. "We really are on the moon…"

Pearl and Peri both ran to a smooth white control table and boggled at it.

"It so beautiful…" Pearl whispered. "This is ancient but look at it! It's so elegant, so pure, oh! Isn't it perfect?"

"It's a table." Jasper replied bluntly, crushing the mood.

Connie meanwhile had turned to a huge chair behind the table and for some reason, felt like she should sit there, but why? It wasn't hers… Connie glanced down at her gem and realized. The girl climbed up into the chair and gently placed her palm on a hand switch. The controls lit up suddenly. "Oh! That's how it works I guess!"

"Connie! Why are you sitting there?!" Pearl gasped. "Only the… Oh… right…"

Connie patted beside her on the seat. "Would you like to try it, Pearl?"

"Me?! Sit there? With you?" Pearl gapped, eyes looking starstruck.

"Yes! I, Connie Universe, as the living embodiment of Yellow Diamond, allow you to sit here." Connie beamed. Pearl looked at the others, as if they would stop her, she looked ecspiclly wary of Jasper. When seeing they didn't intend to stop her, she walked up and hestaintly sat in the chair.

Pearl blushed. "I… I can't believe it…. me, a Pearl… sitting here."

"Not to ruin your big moment, but we have a job to do. This base isn't exactly ours." Jasper grunted, eying the doorway.

Pearl nodded in understanding. Connie saw a small little crystal in the arm of the chair, she carefully took it out. "Hm, I've never seen one of these before, not in any of the old gem architectures."

"Put that down!" Pearl snapped. The chair slid up to the controls and the woman searched quickly sifted through the files. "Aha!" She found the file and opened it. The thing made a intersection. "There it is. It's in the Beta kindergarten, where you came from, Jasper."

"Great." Jasper mumbled.

"Where is the Cluster?" Peridot asked.

"It is near the barn, two thousand five hundred units down." Pearl answered firmly. "We just need to feed this information to the drill and we should be able to defeat the Cluster."

"Great job. Now, let's go home!" Peridot announced. Lapis gave a sigh of relief and Pearl hopped down from the chair. Connie looked at them leave and called out, "Wait!... This is a control system, there could be plans from Homeworld on here, shouldn't we look?"

"That… is not a good idea." Jasper said.

"It is too, we have to know Homeworld's strategy!" Connie insisted. "Look, here's a file called Earth." Before the others could ask how she had found it so quickly, she clicked a button and the Earth suddenly hollowed out, holes drilling into it. Connie immediately regretted her choice, feeling guilt as she watched. Homeworld structures were everywhere, not a single home in sight.

"I know this may look grustome to you, but honestly, what use is this planet to Homeworld?" Pearl said matter of factly.

"Tell me who planned this." Connie demanded sharply.

"After Yellow Diamond left, they decided Earth was merely a place for another planet! So many gems could have been made, so many resources used, why would you all protect this place when it was so useful to us?" Pearl laughed, getting too wrapped up to even answer Connie's question.

Connie made her hands into fists but Jasper had already picked Pearl up. "Useful to us? Useful to US?! You're acting as if we are part of Homeworld!"

"Y-you should be, honestly! Your Diamond is gone!" Pearl protested. Lapis' eyes turned dark and water slammed into Pearl, freezing her to the wall.

"She may be, but she wouldn't have wanted this!" Lapis yelled, pointing to the projection.

"You would kill everything! Everything is important here, everything is special here! Yellow Diamond knew that, she knew everything!" Peridot growled. She grew soft and whispered. "You don't know anything."

"She knew everything?" Pearl laughed sharply. "She abandoned her home, her colony! And for what? Just Earth and the four of you! This planet was useful, she was the reason for it's destruction, she made it worthless! Your rebellion was for nothing!" The others all looked at her, furious.

"You're wrong." Connie hissed. Jasper suddenly grabbed Pearl by the neck and lifted her up, shattering the ice.

"Talk like that again, and you're shattered… Got it?" Jasper whispered sharply. Pearl wilted slightly. "WELL?!"

"Jasper, put her down." Connie ordered softly, sliding down from the chair. Jasper looked back at her, fire in her eyes. "Now….She isn't worth shattering. I want go home. Please?" The fire vanished at the crack in the girl's voice and Pearl fell to the ground. Lapis froze the control panel and Jasper smashed it with a swift head butt, shattering it. Peri merely stared at Pearl, anger in her eyes. The rest walked in while Connie helped Pearl up.

"Come on." The girl said somomly. She started to walk away when Pearl spoke up. "Why did they do it? They had no chance to save the Earth."

"Pearl, they did have a chance, and we still do. I actually thought you beleived that." Connie whispered.

"Connie, Pearl, come on!" They heard Jasper yell. Connie walked away and turned when Pearl didn't come. "Pearl?"

"Er, yes, Connie?" Pearl said, nervously.

"C-Come on." Connie said. Pearl ran past and Connie stared at the gleaming crystal hidden in the bow of her dress. The hybrid narrowed her eyes.


	77. Message Received

The Crystal Temps stood looking at the dril, their pride and joy at the moment. "We're so close to ending this… aren't we?" Lapis asked hestatily.

"We should be, Lazuli. With the cordinets we got from the Moon Base, all we must do is drill into the eartg and destroy the Cluster. Now, not under any circumstances are any of you but Jasper and I allowed to opprate the drill when…"

Connie had tuned out Peridot and instead watched Pearl, with her rose crown newly watered, sneak into the barn. The girl followed.

"Pearl, we have to talk." Connie said, hands shoved deep into her pockets.

Pearl froze and gave a nervous titter. "W-Whatever about?"

They soon sat in a broke down truck, Connie had a plan.

"Hm, this site is just horrid for comuncating in, why not-"

"I need you to tell me more about Pink Diamond." Connie said firmly.

"Pink Diamond?" Pearl whispered, looking frightened. "I… I can't speak much about her, she often isn't around me. However, Rose knows her well… Ah, I miss Rose. I would do anything to see her again."

"Anything?" Connie whispered, hurt. She suddenly snatched the crystal Pearl had been clutching away and swung out of the car, slamming the door shut. She locked it and Pearl gasped.

"You're trapped! I locked you in there, and if you ever want to get out again, I suggest you tell me what this is!" Connie cried, holding the crystal.

"Connie, listen to me, you are being irrational. We can come to a agreement, I'm sure." Pearl said nervously.

"What is this thing?"

"I… I won't tell you!"

"Ah…" Connie whispered. She suddenly grabbed a hammer. "Then I'll smash it, and you won't be able to use it!" She was about to slam the hammer down when Pearl gave a frigtehned little cry.

"Wait! Don't!" Pearl yelled. "Just… Just allow me to exsplain myself…. That is a communicator, that connects me to Pink Diamond on Homeworld."

"Pink Diamond!?" Connie shouted enraged. "You still want to take me to her?!"

"Oh! Er… no. I mean… well, Rose wants you, so I would want to take you to her. Sure this was fun, making something, singing, feeling equal, but… Rose might think I'm something if I do this for her, and that's all I care about! You, will show all of Homeworld to respect me! Rose will forgive me and maybe then… show her true feelings."

Connie stared in disbelief. "Was this your plan the whole time?"

"Don't take it personally, Connie, but I only stayed because I had to. And when I saw the crystal, I was waiting for a chance to grab you and leave."

"...I can't believe you." Connie whispered. She then ran out of the barn, calling for the Temps.

Connie soon showed the communicatior and Peridot held it as if it could be snatched away. "That simple stupid clod! She could have gotten us all shattered!"

"How could she?! We've been through so much!" Lapis growled. "Ugh, I even sang with her."

"We all did, she has a great voice." Peridot whispered.

"Are you seriously complimenting her right now?" Lapis cried.

Suddenly, the truck's horn started up, loud and vigrous, not stopping for air. Connie frowned. "Hm. She found the horn pretty fast…"

"Hey kid, I know you trusted her, but-" Jasper was interupted by the girl.

"I didn't trust her, Jasper. I didn't trust her one bit at first. I had my sword to her neck the night I released her. But then, what did she do? She started to smile, and act like we were a team, and wasn't scared of me anymore… You would think that could mean I should be safe with her, but I guess it wasn't meant to be. I tried to protect my planet, and I failed you all… I'm sorry." Connie sighed, slumping to the ground.

"Connie, none of this is your fault." Jasper sighed. "You can't fix every problem for everyone."

"But… but I want to!" Connie cried in desperation.

"You got the heart of a leader in there, kiddo. Just like your mom." Jasper smiled, looking at the night sky rather than her. "A leader looks after her team, and plans their strategies, that includes making allies. You tried your best to convince Pearl, and that's all that matters now."

"Yes. You are quite a exsample, Connie, more so than even me today." Peridot smiled, walking up. She held the comuncatior close.

Lapis flew up and hugged Connie. "Look, at least Pearl can't cause anymore damage to our planet, or our home."

She couldn't be more wrong, for no sooner was that said then Pearl came smashing through the barn wall, in her ginormous robot. Connie fell back in shock. "How?!"

"Ha! I broke your crystal shield! Impressed? It was weak against me, and soon you will be too." Pearl laughed.

Jasper frowned. "Are you talking about a window?"

"Now, to finally do what I should have done a while ago!" Pearl growled. She suddenly threw the truck at the Temps. Lapis gave a cry and shoved Connie away. The truck suddenly floated mid air and Peridot threw it aside like it was a pebble.

The gem cracked her knuckles and smirked. "We don't have any rules of competition this time." Pearl went pale and Peridot slammed her hands onto the ground, crumbling Pearl's robot like one would smash a can. Pearl leapt out and over the gem, snatching the comuncatior from her hands. She landed elegantly with a mocking bow ready to show. She was about to turn the thing when water froze it along with her hands. Jasper ran up but Pearl swiftly kicked her stright in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her and into a nearby tree that broke and slammed to the ground. Pearl shattered the ice on the hard ground and let the crystal drop just in time to twirl around and catch both of Connie's wrists. The girl panted and strained, trying so hard. Her glowing hands were inches from Pearl's smug face.

The tall gem heard Lapis and Peri running up from either side, and thrust Connie's hands straight to them. They both stopped in their tracks. Jasper froze.

Pearl shoved Connie roughly to the ground and walked to the crystal on the ground, trying to ignore Connie's rage.

Pearl sighed and glanced back at the shaking hybrid. "Don't look at me like that. You aren't changing my mind."

"I could have shattered you!" Connie yelled. "But I didn't! Doesn't that mean anything?!"

"Of course it means something." Pearl whispered. "It's the reason I'm letting your Temps hide, and giving you time to cover your gem."

Connie stared, wide eyed. She… She was truly doing this. Pearl was selling her out to Homeworld, to Rose Quartz.

Pearl turned away and turned the crystal. It glowed pink and Connie braced herself as it floted upward. Lapis, Peri, and Jasper all grabbed her and leapt away. The Temps all were on Jasper's lap, Connie in the middle, and Peridot and Lapis on her sides. They waited with bated breath.

Pearl brushed off her dress, waiting. She glanced back to see Connie was gone. That was no matter, she would just tell Rose anyway. The thing glowed pink and expanded. The Temps peeked out as a gem came into focus. They saw a light pink Peridot, her gem on her hand. Her hair was combed upward in a slight poof.

"Is that another Peridot?" Lapis whispered, hiding herself a bit more. She didn't like the look on the gem's face. It was the same as her Peri.

"Who is she?" Connie whispered.

"I don't know, Connie. Clearly, something must've changed if the Peridot is answering the line." Peridot admitted.

Pearl gave a tiny cough, getting the Peridot's attention from something underneath the screen.

The gem gasped in suprise, falling back from it. She squinted her eyes then and saw who it was. Pink Peridot went up and cocked her head. "You! What are you doing here?! You have some nerve, calling Homeworld! Pink Diamond is gone as usual."

"I… I need to talk to Rose." Pearl said trembling.

"Oh, you're getting your wish for once." The other smirked. "She'll be happy to see you, Pearl."

Pearl bowed her head in understanding. "Yes, I'm sure she will."

"My Clarity!" The Peridot called.

Connie felt her body freeze as the camrea moved to reveal Rose Quartz, the gem that wanted her dead.

"Is that…" Lapis whispered.

"Rose…." Peridot answered.

"Quartz!" Jasper finished, looking angry.

"Pearl. My Pearl." Rose said softly.

"Rose." Pearl smiled, tears welling up in her eyes.

"... How is your little… 'misson' going?" Rose asked smoothly. "The mission you shouldn't have snuck on."

"Please, allow me to-"

"Pearl, you know you are important to me." Rose whispered. "And your attempts to, 'help' are rather cute. You convinced Amethyst to let you come with her and Garnet…. when I told you not to… however… Did you find the human?"

"The… human." Pearl glanced back to see Connie who looked amazed. She hadn't said she was a hybrid. "She's smart, Rose." Pearl said honestly. "She escaped…"

"Escaped… How did a human child escape you all?" Rose said.

"I… You see… she…"

"Pearl, did you honestly think you could catch the human, by yourself?"

"No, Rose…" Pearl answered.

"Good… This place is rather… lonely without you, I'll admit."

"R-Really? You think so?" Pearl whispered happily. "I… I can't believe it… Rose, I-"

"My Pearl, you seem rather talkative…." Rose said gently. "The Earth must have corrupted you, as it does to most who leave the safety of Homeworld… But don't worry, clever little one. I will be sure to fix you…"

Pearl blushed and lowered her head. "F-Fix me?"

"Yes. You have become far too… open minded down there. I will let you spend some time in your gem, to rejuvenate yourself… and if you still feel this way..." Rose's sweet smile never faded. "Well, you are always replaceable."

"B-B-But… Rose, I thought you said that we had a connection…" Pearl whispered.

"Yes. A connection of a master, and her loyal little servent. In that way, I do care for you Pearl."

"You don't…" The other whispered, tears starting. "You don't care for me like I care for you!"

"You were made like that Pearl, to adore me."

"If you really cared, you'd listen to me!"

"Pearl… choose your next words carefully." Rose narrowed her eyes and stood.

"You… You don't care about the Earth! You don't treat me as a equal! You're not kind at all! It's all a fake, isn't it?!"

Rose gave a chuckle and then looked at Pearl with the coldest eyes Connie had ever seen. "In most ways, yes, it is all fake, Pearl. But I do find you useful. Be proud of that, you ungrateful little gem."

"No! I won't serve you! Not anymore! You… You… TWERP!" Pearl yelled, ripping off her rose crown and smashing the dead flowers into the dirt. The Temps all gasped behind the broken robot while Rose looked dark and shadowy, her eyes seemed gone. Pearl breathed for air. "G-Goodbye Rose…."

"Ugh, one of you can take this…" Pearl said, giving the crystal to Peridot.

"Wow, thanks." Peridot muttered. It suddenly started glowing red. "Huh? Why is it glowing again?!"

"Because it's about to exsplode, and shatter us all." Pearl said, curling into a ball.

"Lapis, take it!" Peri cried.

Lapis gave a cry. "But I don't want it!"

"No one does, Lazuli!" Peridot yelled.

Connie suddenly bubbled it and Jasper punched it away. They watched it explode in the distance.

"Thank you, Pearl. I owe my life to you. We all do." Connie smiled.

"I know…" Pearl mumbled into the grass.

"Pearl, do you know what this means?" Lapis suddenly beamed excitedly.

"No…" Pearl whispered weakly.

"Oh my gosh!" Connie relaized and gasped. She hugged the gem. "You're a Crystal Temp! Welcome to the rebellion, get ready to be my fourth mom!"

The others laughed while Pearl moaned in agony.

 **Hey you guys! Sorry I hadn't posted before but a lot has happened! We saw Pink Diamond in Stranded! She is WAY different then I thought she'd be! That is why I was hestaint to keep writing and stayed low for a while, I didn't want my story to inflict with the cannon show. I mean, we still don't know Pearl's owner! Anywho, I'm thinking about starting a Tumblr page for this series, there, you can post theories, ask me questions about the story and characters, and put fanart up if you wish. I might also make some outfit designs for this story on Gemosa maker from Doll Divine and post them there. What do you guys think? Sounds fun?**


	78. Log Date 7 15 2

"Log date 7 15 2." Pearl said calmly, recording into her tape recorder at the barn. "She hates me! She hates me now! An-And she wants to shatter me and I don't know what to do!" Pearl fell to the ground. "I called Rose Quartz a twerp!" She then stopped sobbing and then started all over again. "I called the most beautiful gentle, most merciful gem of all Homeworld a twerp! An-and she'll never… never talk to me again!"

Pearl rewinded to hear, "never talk to me again!"

"Pearl… are you alright?" Connie whispered, hesitantly walking up.

"Yes Connie, everything's fine! Everything's wonderful! Everything. Is. PERFECT!" Pearl yelled with a deranged smile, making Connie flinch.

"More like 'Pearl'fect." Jasper punned behind her. Connie snorted back laughter and Pearl suddenly gave a yell in annoyance. "Why are you Quartzes so… so…" Pearl fell to her knees and whispered. "difficult?"

"Yeah, most gems think we got rocks for brains, birdie." Jasper answered.

"Don't call me that!" Pearl squawked, sounding much like a bird. She threw the tape recorder at Connie suddenly, making the girl fumble a bit before catching it.

"Does someone need a hug?" Jasper asked suprisingly.

Pearl sniffed a little. "No."

"Come here." Jasper said. She ruffled Pearl's hair before leading her outside.

"Wait… Do I have to wear a yellow diamond? I already have a pink one on!" Pearl cried.

"What… was that?!" Connie watched them sit down, and Pearl started to talk to her.

The girl looked down at the tape recorder in her hands. She glanced around. "I can't. This is Pearl's personal thoughts and privacy, and I respect it, no matter how tempted." She slammed the recorder beside her, unknowingly pressing the rewind button. She gasped in horror. "Seriously?!"

Many weeks ago, in the past, Connie gave the tape recorder to Pearl. The gem narrated this.

"Yellow Diamond has given me this Earth recording device, it is much like my gem powers. I will try it… but it is very dirty looking… Her Clarity also told me not to call her Yellow Diamond anymore."

"Pearl, please let this sink in, I'm not Yelllow Diamond, my name's Connie." Connie had said, offering her hand to shake. Pearl glanced at it and then back at Connie. Connie blushed and put her hand down.

"I should address you by your real name." Pearl had said.

"Connie is my real name, I'm not lying." Connie laughed.

"And so…" Pearl on the tape recorder said. "I shall call her… Connie."

Connie fast forwarded to another day, she was just too intrigued now.

Pearl had crouched down by a butterfly and watched it flutter away…

"The organic life of Earth is strange… I have come to notice that some fly, and some do not… I must chart which can, for science!"

Pearl had crawled onto the roof, watching Doug work on repairing the roof.

"Oh, um, pleasure to meet you, you're Pearl right? My name's Doug…"

Pearl merely stared. He glanced away nervously.

Pearl suddenly shoved him off the roof. She wanted to see him fly up, but he didn't. She peeked over the edge to see Jasper holding the man.

"Pearl!" Jasper growled.

"Y-Yes?" Pearl flinched.

"You can't shove humans off the roof!" Jasper called angrily.

"I wanted to see what Homeworld is truly up against." Pearl retorted. "... Also, can he not fly?"

"No, I can't fly!" Doug cried, getting up.

"You could have hurt him!" Jasper yelled.

Pearl crossed her arms. "And I knew this, how?"

"Doug, she's pretty far from home, she's pretty dumb here." Jasper explained.

"How dare you!" Pearl squawked. She turned.

"I have determined that at least humans cannot fly… Also, the Jasper is utterly, no doubt, awful."

A few days later, Pearl was spread out on the barn floor, surrounded by blue prints. She glanced at a broom leaning in the doorway, but held herself back.

"It is quite strange, but the Temps have asked me to… 'plan' out the drill, after I cleaned so quickly. This is rather odd, I know. However, while I walked up, I found a mysterious box, containing… clothes, as Connie calls them…"

Pearl picked out a light teal shirt, what a pretty color! She tried it on and gave a small twirl. She smiled at herself in a mirror nearby. She then saw a pair of thin leggings, the gem picked them up and tried that on as well. "I must admit, these articles make me feel much more useful, I like it."

"Heh, it suits you."

Pearl turned to see Jasper, who smirked.

Pearl gave a cry in panic.

Connie fast forwarded.

"Log Date 7 12 2. Today marks the 30th earth rotation since my defeat." Pearl said from the tape recorder. Connie remembered this.

Pearl was working, when Connie skipped up. "Ta-da!"

Pearl turned to see Connie wearing a flower crown of yellow daisies. "Steven and I weaved flower crowns for all of us!" Pearl glanced down to see three more crowns on her arm. Connie picked out one made of pink roses.

"Here, we thought these would remind you of home." Connie said. "Bend down."

Pearl bent down and let Connie place it on her head. Pearl looked up at it. Roses… It did remind her of home…

"Oh… um…." Pearl blushed. She touched it directly. "Why did you give me this?"

"You're my friend! That's why! Friends give each other gifts, to show they care." Connie smiled. "Usually they say, 'Thank you so much!'"

"... Thank you… so much." Pearl whispered. She then shoved Connie away. "Now, leave me alone! Your talents were wasted on such… things, use them to work!" Connie frowned slightly and ran away.

Connie in present time, frowned. She listened, hearing Pearl say, "I do like it. It matches my uniform, and reminds me of Rose. Forever, I'll wear it, to show my loyalty to her!... Connie is quite… thoughtful." Connie smiled with a blush.

Pearl had worn the rose crown all day, and watched herself in the mirror. She walked and twirled around. "Oh, thank you so much for noticing, Peridot, it indeed shows my grace! Lapis, you are so kind to-" She then tripped over her own legs.

A few days later, Pearl stood in front of the mirror. She opened a joke book and gave a cough. "Ugh… is this really supposed to make me 'funny'?" Pearl read through them. "These don't even make sense!" She read one out loud, "Why did the chicken cross the road?... It was to get… to the other side… of the road…" Pearl stared at the book blankly. "This is garbage! What even is a chicken?!"

Pearl sat in front of the barn's tv as the girl put in a video game. Connie started to play and Pearl watched.

"He is skilled, I'll give the tiny human that." Pearl observed.

"Oh, yeah." Connie smiled.

"This… 'game' where you use a sword with a human in green, it is merely a distraction."

Days later, Pearl gave a yell. "Hah-yah!" She leapt up into the air in triumph with a happy laugh. "I won! I won! Ha ha! Take that you beast!"

"I have successfully completed thee Legend for my seventh time!"

Connie yawned, climbing up the ladder. She poked her head in. "Pearl?.. Are you doing okay? It's been a few days…"

"I saved the High-Rule, Connie." Pearl whispered.

"Oh! Really?! I've been stuck on the Water Temple forever!" Connie cried. "You know, there is more in series."

"M-more?" Pearl whispered with happy tears in her eyes.

Connie gave a laugh and saw a thin sheet of paper. "Pearl, this is my personal theroy on the game timeline, want to see?"

"I already have." Pearl said. Connie frowned until the paper suddenly unfolded many, many times. She stared at her own neat, straight handwriting along with drawings of the aged hero, this was only one fold, the rest was the smooth, loopy, and cursive, which was Pearl. "Y-You don't even know the other games!"

"I know that we have many alternate universes, because of the time-destroying instrument. I have made them." Pearl answered strictly.

"But.. you don't know about the other games…" Connie repeated blankly.

"Let me explain, if the leader sent the hero back in time, what happened after that?!..."

Connie in present rolled her eyes. "This took forever!" She started fastforwarding over Pearl leaping around, pretending to pull a sword, and explaining how it all fit together. Connie listened happily for a long time, until she finally fell asleep. At one point, Jasper came up and listened as well.

"And that is how in every possible outcome, High-Rule must be saved by the hero!" Pearl had panted.

"Nice." Jasper smirked.

Pearl gave a peterfied noise.

Later, Pearl had worked on the drill.

"Log Date 7 13 2. I am currently creating the drill. It is going surprisingly well."

Lapis had shapeshifted into a lion and roared, scaring the gem. "Oh my Diamond! What are you doing?!" She turned to Lapis who shaped back with a giggle. "You are wasting your time doing such childish things! You have work to do!"

"Yes, she does." Peridot agreed. "But she cant help it, despite my efforts."

"Aw, come on guys, I was just trying to 'lion' the mood!" Lapis grinned. They heard a loud laugh from Jasper and Peridot snorted. "Nice one, Lazuli."

Pearl was not amused. "That is a waste of your powers, you shouldn't mess around."

"I know, sorry." Lapis laughed, shapeshifting back to her real self.

"Hm… It could be useful to me though... Do you know what a chicken is?"

Soon, Lapis had shape-shifted into a chicken, crossing a dirt road. Pearl gave a small laugh.

"That's the oldest one on the book, Pearl. I'll tell you some real humor!" Peridot said, walking up. "Ok, what does a Amethyst use to fight?"

"Well, our Amethyst uses a whip-"

"Her Amefists!" Peridot suddenly shouted proudly. They all laughed, Pearl quickly putting her hand over a smile.

"The Lapis Lazuli is quite kind, and she isn't stern or quiet like most of her kind. The Peridot… I relate to her the most to be honest, we still get along quite well. But the Jasper…" Pearl had glanced at Jasper who smirked. "ehhhh, she's impossible to understand."

Later that night, Peridot studied the drill, contemplating the next move. "This will be very dangerous…. but we need to attach the drill part at some point! It is massive. Something of that size would require a fus-"

"Oh! I can do it!" Lapis cried. "Can I fuse this time? I promise I'll be gentle!"

"Hm. I suppose Turquoise is the most stable of our fusions…"

"Er… I kinda was thinking Malachite."

Peridot gave a start and Jasper almost fell back in shock.

"Really?!" Jasper gasped.

"Yeah. If you want to. I… kinda miss her, we've only fused peacefully once and I-"

"You two? Fuse?" They glanced at Pearl who looked shocked.

"Yeah?" Lapis blushed.

"Your personalities are not compatible, you can't fuse, you'll create a monster!"

Lapis' eyes darkened slightly and Jasper balled her hands into fists. "What?" They asked sharply at the same time.

"Honestly, you think Homeworld hasn't trieda Jasper with a Lapis Lazuli before? They create a destructive beast, do you want all our hard work to go to waste?"

Jasper gave a growl but Lapis gently touched her shoulder, that telling her it wasn't worth it.

"Well, watch this." Lapis smirked. Jasper raised a eyebrow and Lapis suddenly grabbed both her hands and twisted herself to lean against Jasper's chest. She spun out, Jasper gently twirled her. The big gem lifted up the small one, who had a leg up. They then vanished. Malachite stood there. She stretched out and smiled.

"Ta-da! I'm not a monster!" The fusion cried. "I mean, look at me!"

Pearl gapped. "But that's… impossible!"

"Yeah, honestly I thought that too once, but here I am!" Malachite smirked, putting her hands on her hips.

"L-Lapis? Jasper? Are you still in there?"

"They're fine, don't worry, P. I'm here at the moment, and I have some heavy lifting to do!"

Pearl watched still stiff as Malachite lifted up the drill head and placed it on top. The fusion twirled around and looked straight at Pearl. "You know, I may have been a wreck, but at least I changed. Besides, I'm not the monster if the Cluster is the thing made of forced, furious gems."

Malachite returned to a grin and glowed. She faded away, leaving her two parts together. Pearl stuttered as Lapis gave a sigh in relief and was bear-hugged by Jasper. Lapis waved goodbye as she went to collect more parts with Peri, leaving Pearl and Jasper alone.

"You!" Pearl growled, stomping up. "Why did you threaten me after I said Homeworld fuses when you clearly do it?!"

"Hey, nice to see ya too." Jasper muttered as Pearl was talking.

"Why are you so confident that you're any different then Homeworld? You use the same tactics, and served a Diamond, you aren't any different!"

"We are." Jasper grunted. Over the weeks, she had learned to control her temper around Pearl better, but her fists were still clenched. "Hey, what do you think Rose's doin' up there?"

Pearl looked up and realized she could see a single star… Home. "I… don't know. I wonder if she's happy…"

"Don't know, don't care. Hm… Pearl, have you ever fused?"

"Me?! Oh, no! Of course not. I'd be useless in battle." Pearl chuckled.

Jasper smirked. "Really? You're okay at the sword."

"Pearls weren't made to fight though." Pearl sighed. "... I'll never fuse."

"Not on Homeworld, you won't." Jasper smiled, standing up in front of her. "But here…"

"I can?" Pearl asked.

"Sure you can. ...Want to now?"

Pearl fell back in shock.

"Jeez, you don't have to." Jasper shrugged.

"No, no!" Pearl cried. "Just… I have to get something!"

She snuck back to the barn and turned to the rose crown submerged in water to keep it alive.

"I'll never abandon Rose, but I just want to try this… once! Only once. And if I find a way out of this place, it will be nothing but memories. " Pearl whispered, placing the crown on her head, to remind herself that this life of freedom couldn't truly be what she wanted if Rose wasn't there. She walked out and saw Jasper had put on some music. They joined hands, Pearl shaking slightly. Jasper gently waltzed her around, letting her dress spin around her as she twirled. After a few moments of watching her feet, Pearl glanced up with a embarrassed blush on her face. Jasper was about to dip her when Pearl broke away, holding her rose crown firmly to her head. "I can't do it. Pearls shouldn't fuse, and if you think this will change my mind about not wanting to leave-"

"Ok, ok, I get it. Calm it down." Jasper smiled. "At least you tried to like it here, that's all I can ask. You tried to understand why we protect the Earth, but still use some of Homeworld's methods."

"I still don't understand!" Pearl groaned. "Why protect this planet for so many years?!"

"... 'Cause this place is High-Rule as you like to call it… The bad guy fights us for it, we fight back just as hard. "

"Oh my!" Pearl gasped. "I get it!"

Connie sat listening and heard Pearl talk into the recorder.

"Gentle, be gentle with- Stop trying crush it!"

"I'm not trying to!" Jasper's voice said. Connie gasped in suprise.

"Just…" There was a rustling sound and Pearl had the recorder back.

"What, my hands aren't good enough to hold it?"

"N-no! It's not like that! I-I-"

Jasper gave a throaty laugh. "Just kidding."

Pearl gave a tiny sound that seemed to mean she had smiled. "Ahem." Her voice said. "Today, I attempted fusion my first time. I wanted to learn more about why the Earth was so important, and I did, but… I also learned about Jasper today."

"Oh, hey, keep it on for a minute." Jasper said. She took the recorder and sighed. "Listen up, if this Pearl goes nuts later and tries to get rid of this thing, whoever found it, Peri, Lapis, Connie, just give it back, she'll want it back, I'm pretty sure."

"What-?" The log cut short at Pearl's confusion.

Connie looked up to see Pearl must've been feeling better.

"Here, Pearl. This belongs to you." Connie said, handing the recorder back.

Pearl gently took it. "Thank you so much?"

Jasper smirked, and Connie grinned. Pearl looked between them, they were both smiling at her. The gem blushed and gave a smile… Perhaps this wouldn't be that bad? After all, defeating the Cluster would be simple, they worked so hard, there would be no other problems after that….

She was so, so wrong.


	79. Isle of Pumpkins

It was quite blurry as a small pumpkin Connie awoke. She saw lush trees above, and slowly sat up. The girl glanced at her feet and wiggled them. She sprung to her feet in surprise of her appearance. The thing ran to the river and inspected her reflection, pumpkin body, pumpkinhead, what was going on?! She tried to speak, seeds came out! She gasped and covered her mouth. She looked around, where was she? Was she stuck here? Could she survive here? … She would, she must.

The girl turned at the sound of a bark and turned to see a pumpkin dog leap out of the bushes. The girl fell back in surprise, and the dog took the chance to roll over and lick her face. The plant giggled, his seedy tongue tickling her. The dog then jumped off and ran away across the river, expecting the girl to follow. She hesitantly did so.

She came across a village, a huge village! The girl gave a sound in surprise. Civilization? But how?

There were tiny clay houses with straw roofs, gardens, farmers, Connies, just like her! The dog barked as if to say, 'Come and see!'

The girl smiled slightly. Maybe she would ask how they did all this, how it was possible.

She followed the eager pumpkin dog down a dirt road into the village. She saw a farmer pick up a fresh new-grown baby pumpkin shaped like Connie and it was loaded into a cart full of others like it. To the girl's amazement, a pumpkin horse pulled them along!

The girl followed the cart to see a apparently female pumpkin sweep the grass, with little pumpkin chickens around her. The cart stopped and the female called inside to her husband. The man pumpkin came out and they smiled hopefully as the farmer placed down their new child. The baby looked hesitant but the farmer smiled kindly st her, saying it was safe. The girl slowly walked up, before her new parents embraced her. She soon accepted the hug.

The grown pumpkin Connie continued her journey of discovery, seeing the pumpkins dancing, playing music, and soon came across a large statue. It was stone, and was carved in a stance that the real Connie would never forget… the stance Baby Pumpkin took in order to sacrifice herself for the Temps. The girl watched in confusion as a clearly older pumpkin, Perhaps a leader, or a prophet, had gathered up a group of pumpkin children. She showed them that same stance, a stance of sacrifice.

The other felt her stomach of goop and seeds turn, seeing the children do this stance in response… Something was wrong.

Suddenly, the ground shook, causing her to fall onto her rear. Birds cawed as everyone looked up from their tasks, clearly worried.

A Connie started playing a gong in rhythm and all the pumpkins gathered around the statue. The new one looked worried, she felt sick to her stomach, this was like a sacrificing circle, just like in the books about the past she had read.

The elder shook its stick, prompting all Connies but one take a step back. The girl was confused, and looked around to see what was happening. The elder then pointed the staff at her.

The others dragged her away and were quick to put on her a dress made of leaves and to put a necklace on her that held a single sharp diamond-shaped shell that weighed heavy on her chest. They then forced her into a wooden canoe and rowed her out just beyond the shallow end.

She couldn't help but be confused. The thing turned to the pumpkins and they showed her the stance. The pumpkin knew something was up, but raised her arms. She had to find the end of her mystery.

Suddenly, the ground shook, and trembled in might, and then, it suddenly was near ripped apart by a fusion slamming out of the ground. Sugilite looked down to see the girl, who tried to seem brave but couldn't.

"Connie…" Growled a combination of Ruby, Sapphire, and Amethyst's voices.

Connie fell back in fear, grabbing for the oars that had rowed her out, but the fusion froze the water, trapping her.

Sugilite formed her weapon, a giant flail. She aimed, laughed and then threw.

Connie gave a cry, waking up from the horrifying vision… She wished it was a dream…. She panted in panic.

The other gems hadn't noticed, but only because Pearl had gave a yell in panic once the ground shook. They watched with confusion as she paced.

"Oh no! It's emerging sooner than I thought! Ah! Oh, this is bad!" Pearl cried. "The Cluster will destroy this place and, and-"

"It's not the Cluster, Pearl!" Connie called. They all turned and she gave a sigh. "I accidentally projected myself into a Pumpkin Connie on Mask Island and… they are sacrificing their own to please Sugilite."

Lapis covered Jasper's mouth instinctively before the gem could say anything bad.

"Well that's just great!" Peridot growled. "Why did she have to show up today of all days? Our one day to relax for a few seconds?!"

"You have to stop them!" They turned to Pearl who had seemed to be only annoyed by the mention of Sugilite in the past. Pearl trailed off, and then blushed. "You have to get Amethyst, and Garnet back… Their fusion is a dangerous one, and I've never seen it unstable."

"We know." Lapis said sharply, removing her hand from Jasper's mouth. "We've already seen her before."

"Well, we knew this day would come." Jasper muttered. She glanced at the older Temps. "Let's go to Mask Island, and end this!"

The others gave a cheer.

"I'll get my sword!" Connie cried, already starting to run to the house. Peridot wrapped her pole around the girl's waist in a heartbeat and pulled her back to the blanket she had slept on.

"No! Your human part is far too fragile for this mission, Connie. You must stay here, and stay safe!" Peridot ordered.

"No! I can handle it! I've fought before, I'm ready!" Connie protested. "You know I can protect myself! Let me come!"

"We can't, kiddo. If Sugilite were to hurt you…" Jasper trailed off.

"We have to go, it's too dangerous for you…" Lapis whispered, bending down to hug the girl goodbye. Connie accepted the embrace, but was still upset.

"Lapis, Peri, lets go." Jasper said, motioning for them to follow. She turned to Pearl. "Pearl, if you anything bad happen to our kid, I will punish you, big time."

Pearl went pale.

The older Temps ran to the nearest warp pad and while they did, Connie called out for Lion.

"Connie, don't you even try it!" Pearl yelled, attempting to grab the girl. Suddenly, a scrap piece of metal from the barn flew out and formed into a cage around the hybrid.

"Peri, let me out!" Connie yelled in rage.

"I love you too!" She heard Peridot screech. The warp pad activated.

Suddenly, something hard hit Pearl in the head and she squawked in suprise. The gem turned and picked up a single key. She locked the cage quickly before Connie knew what it was.

Connie gave a growl in anger, grabbing the bars and trying to move them. "I can't believe this!"

"It's for the best, Connie." Pearl said. "This imprisonment may be odd for any other child, but the Temps want to keep you safe."

"I don't need a cage to prove that!"

"You were about to get in your yellow beast and follow them, they had to do something."

Connie gave a huff and slumped onto the ground.

"So… Amethyst has kept Garnet down this long?" Pearl asked softly.

Connie nodded. "She's losing her control though. She's getting too tired to keep up."

"Oh…. I understood why Garnet did it, to get back at Jasper, but I never thought she'd go so far as to force someone to fuse. That's her thing after all."

"I'm not surprised at all, wasn't she the one that started the Cluster?" Connie growled.

"Well, yes and no." Pearl shrugged.

The ground suddenly trembled and Connie gasped. She attempted to move the bars again, but to no avail. "I need to help them!"

"I am not letting you out of there until the Temps come back-!"

"They may not live to come back!" Connie yelled in anger and fear. "I-I'm scared, Pearl…"

Pearl hestatied and then nodded. "Me too." She then crawled up and unlocked the cage. Connie crawled out and got up to run but Pearl stopped her. "Where are you going?!"

"Um, to Mask Island, to help the Temps!" Connie cried. Pearl pulled her to sit down.

"Oh no, I am not letting you out of my sight. Why can't you just project yourself into a plant again, that way I can watch you and if something happens over there, your body will still be here to come back to."

"That's a good idea." Connie agreed. She laid down and smiled. "I'm gonna help them and they aren't even going to know!"

"Just don't tell them I let you out!" Pearl moaned. Connie closed her eyes and was quick to fall asleep.

A Pumpkin Connie that was playing a drum suddenly stopped abruptly. She fell over and started to convulse until she stopped, possessed by the real Connie.

Connie got up and ran to the beach. She stopped abruptly, hiding behind a tree seeing Sugilite struggling against the whips that held her. She looked for her family and saw Lapis had made a platform of water on the ocean.

"Let's do this." Jasper whispered.

Lapis nodded. She and Peridot went on seprate ends. Lapis ran to Jasper, and twirled into her arms, as Peridot walked up, cartwheeled and then dipped into Lapis and Jasper's arms, forming a star shape with her body. They glowed, and Apatite was formed.

Suddenly, the whips around Sugilite snapped, and she was free. "Wow, that took a while, eh Amethyst?" She laughed, Garnet's voice coming out.

"STOP THIS, NOW!" Apatite yelled, making the other turn to see her.

"Uh! What are they doing here?!" Sugilite cried, her eyebrows then furrowed, switching controls once again back to Garnet. "Ugh! Stop fighting us! Why did you hold us back?! For what?! Let's just have fun again, like we used to!" Sugilite made her weapon out of Garnet's gauntlets and Amethyst's whips.

"You don't have to do this! You can find peace in yourself!"

"Peace in myself?!" Sugilite laughed. "How can you three even keep yourselves from falling apart!" She then swung her flail and Apatite blocked with the water. The fusions fought, with Connie watching the scene.

Sugilite flung her flail, and it wrapped around the Temps' leg. Apatite gave a grunt and rose some water that froze to ice and cut the flail.

Sugilite formed in again.

Apatite then raised her arms and metal particles off the beach in the sand rose. They formed into a anvil and the fusion let it drop.

Sugilite gasped and dodged.

At her distraction, water flung out and formed fists. They were about to hit when they suddenly froze.

Sugilite smirked and shatter the fists, freezing the ocean, her opponent's main weapon.

Apatite couldn't move, stuck in ice. Part of it cracked slightly around her feet, but she still couldn't move. Sugilite walked up to them, breaking the warp pad, the only escape, and laughed. "Here, let me help you heat it up!" She grabbed Apatite's arms and fire came from the fusion's hands, burning the Temps'. Apatite gave a cry.

Connie gasped and ran. They needed help! She soon found where the pumpkins were hiding, inside a waterfall. They were shaking and whimpering, some crying in fear.

The elder had the children around her, who all were scared and hugging her.

Connie walked up to the edge, in front of them all. She started to speak.

To any other, it would sound like grunts and waas, but to them, it sounded like this: "You can't be afraid anymore! We have to fight! Sugilite can't control you if she's gone! Please, please help me! I will save you, so won't you help me?" She pumped her fist up, giving a war chant.

The elder suddenly started stamping her stick with Connie and he girl smiled in thanks. It started small, but then it grew, soon all Pumpkin Connies were chanting in unison, ready to fight to their deaths!

"Three against three, who will win?" Suglite cackled, watching as Apatite struggle and suppress a scream in pain. "I'll always be stronger than you, no matter what form I'm in!" The fusion pushed the Temps' away, sending them flying to the beach.

She started to glow, the Temps wouldn't be able to do this much longer… "Errr… We have to keep going!"

Sugilite stomped up and smirked over her opponent. "Now. Let's end this for good!" She raised her flail, and aimed at the fusion's head, where two of her gems were placed. Suddenly, a loud horn cut through her laughter.

She turned to see Pumpkin Connies, with their leader, the real Connie.

Connie held a stick like her sword firm and gave a yell to attack. The pumpkins did as ordered coming from all sides with sticks in their hands. Some threw them like spears, others poked and prodded Sugilite.

"Seriously, guys…. what is this." Sugilite groaned. She turned to Apatite who was still on the ground, fighting to get up. She smirked, and aimed, but swarms of pumpkins shielded her instead, sacrificing themselves to soften the blow of the flail.

The real Connie gasped as her troops kept fighting on. Sugilite suddenly mashed them into the ground, and laughed. She snapped her head to Connie, who bravely brandished her stick.

"Did you think you could stop me, kid? Huh?! Well, news flash, you CAN'T! Sugilite is here forever, baby!" She then attempted to smash the girl, when a sudden yell was heard.

"GET AWAY, FROM HER!" The ice suddenly shattered from the ocean, letting it come at full force. All the metal from the beach and some water from the ocean circled and created a bomb, Turquoise's bomb. It landed in Apadite's hands and she smirked. The fusion twirled around before throwing it onto Sugilite.

The fusion gave a yell in pain as she backed away, blinded by water, Connie running quickly out of the way.

Once Apatite was certain this leader of the army was safe, she turned back to Sugilite.

She had Andalusite's shot put ready and slammed them all at Sugilite. The fusion fell, and Apatite readied her final blow. She flew into the air with water wings, and formed Jasper's helmet. "You guys don't match." Malachite's voice roared. Metal surrounded her and she made it into a spear. She then gave a war cry and slammed the helmet and spear into Sugilite.

The Pumpkin Connies cheered in victory, while the real Connie ran up to the now unfused Sugilite.

Amethyst, Sapphire and Ruby looked so small now. Sapphire gave a tiny moan, making Connie brace herself, but all the gem did was reach for Ruby's hand, they all still sleeping, but barely conscious.

Apatite came to shore and unfused, Lapis, Peri and Jasper fell onto the warm sand, all the energy nearly taken out of them all.

"We did it!" Lapis said to the sand, her face still mushed in. Jasper gave a chuckle, and wrapped her arms around the two, pulling them close.

The real Connie ran up and hugged Peridot. She flinched until she looked into her eyes. "C-Connie?!"

Connie nodded, and Peridot gave a loud sniff before hugging her again.

"That was impressive what you all did back there." Jasper said to the pumpkins. They all looked surprised that they were praised, but then smiled.

Suddenly, the ground started to shake. The ground then cracked apart. Jasper was quick to grab Amethyst and sling her over her shoulder and attempted to pick up Ruby and Sapphire as well, but they slid into a fissure before she could.

"Oh jeez… Of course the Cluster has to form on the same day!" Jasper moaned.

Connie grabbed her hand and Jasper soon grabbed her shoulders.

"Kid, it's up to you and Pearl, we won't make it back in time, the warp was destroyed."

Connie felt anxiety creep in and she wanted to curl up but Jasper held her firm. Connie attempted to say, "But I can't! Not alone!"

"I know this is scary, but you have to. This is your time to save the Earth, just like you always wanted, you need to go."

Connie nodded. She had to.

Lapis and Peri joined her, smiling at Connie.

"Be safe, Connie! Give that Cluster all you have!" Lapis cried.

"You are skilled enough to do this, Connie. We believe in you!" Peridot whispered.

It all was fading away as Connie tried to wake up.

"And Connie," Jasper said lastly.

It went black.

"We love you."


	80. The Cluster

"And Connie, we love you…" Jasper's words echoed "we love you… Connie,-"

"WAKE UP!"

Connie vaulted awake at Pearl's cry and felt that the gem must've been shaking her.

"Connie, we have no time, we have to go, where are the Temps?!" Pearl squawked.

Connie gave a gulp. "They can't come! They're stuck on Mask Island!"

"What do we do then?" Pearl gasped.

Connie grabbed her hand. "We have to do this, ourselves."

Connie pulled her to the ladder that went up to the drill. They climbed up, shaking.

"I can't take you! You have to stay here!" Pearl cried. "I don't want you to get hurt!"

"Urgh! Why can't anybody stop being a mom to me?!" Connie growled. "I'm coming, and that's final. I'll be safer with you anyway!"

"Okay... I guess. Connie…" Pearl bent down and took the girl's shoulders. "You are about to go to places your species have never reached, to destroy the Cluster, and save your home, are you ready for this?"

Connie nodded. "I am… I… I think I am."

"You have to be sure!" Pearl cried. "Because I'm not ready!"

The ground suddenly shook and Connie gasped. She narrowed her eyes and turned to Pearl. "That doesn't matter, there is no time to prepare ourselves!" She shoved Pearl in, and then hopped in herself, closing the cockpit.

"Right. We have a mission to do!" Pearl sighed. She then started the drill and it dug into the earth. "Hold on." She growled, and hammered the controls.

"You're going too fast, you are going to break the ashrisphere too fast!" Connie cried.

"Please, we have two hours until we get to the ashrisphere." Pearl rolled her eyes.

There was silence until Pearl switched on piano music. Connie gave a tiny smile. "You like classical music too?"

"Yes. It is relaxing, and reminds me of…"

Connie glanced up. "Homeworld?"

Pearl gave a short nod. "I often was asked, no, ordered, to sing by Rose… Rose likes music."

They went silent and after about ten minutes, Connie started to glanced around, telling herself not to be afraid of the stones, and earth, and the guilt of what she was to do…. It wasn't working.

"You look stressed."

Connie glanced at Pearl. "Oh. Yeah… Pearl, do you… do you feel guilty about this?"

"Guilty?" Pearl chuckled. "Why would I feel guilty? We are saving the Earth, and ruining Rose's plan." Connie saw Pearl's hand grip the control stick harder.

"Oh."

"Hang on, we're about to break the asthenosphere!" Pearl called. Connie gasped. Peridotie was quick to surround the drill.

"This may be strange to ask, and you don't have to answer but… why did you, er, like Rose, when she ordered you around so much? She used you, you know that, don't you?"

"Of course I do." Pearl whispered. "I didn't realize it back then. I thought Rose would be different then the other owners of Pearls, she looked so kind and she was so… beautiful… I thought she cared about me the way I did her, but she led me on."

Connie noticed Pearl wipe away a tear. "Pearl, are you-"

"I'll be a lot better when the Cluster is gone…." Pearl interrupted. "Besides, I have something I care about more now."

"R-Really?" Connie asked. "What?"

"Uh, well… you all." Pearl said, a teal blush rising. "The Temps, we are a team, aren't we?"

"Of course!" Connie beamed.

"Good." Pearl whispered. "I missed being on a team."

Connie gave a tiny smile.

Suddenly, a loud banging filled thier ears. Connie felt her heart freeze.

A red hand suddenly smacked onto the glass and Connie gave a yelp in shock. "Gem mutants! They must've been buried here with the Cluster!"

"Correct you are." Pearl grunted.

"I have to fight them off!" Connie said, trying to stand but Pearl forced her to sit back down, and gave her a Nintendo 64 controller.

"Why did you pack this?" Connie asked confused.

Pearl smirked. "I never go anywhere without my sword."

Connie was baffled but then looked at the controller and got it. She smiled.

A sharp sword came out of the top and Connie used the controls to swing it. The mutants were being beat back.

"I wish there was another solution to this mess." Connie sighed, watch the mutents on the camrea fall off.

"As do I. But there is no peaceful way to end this."

"I know… That hope was probably just the human side in me talking." Connie laughed, though nothing about it seemed very funny. "There are times when I lose myself in my anger, you know, and the odd thing is…when I get like that, I don't feel human anymore."

Pearl looked concerned. "Connie…"

"It's fine." Connie whispered. She got the last mutents off.

Pearl pushed harder and they went into dirt darker then Connie had ever seen. "We are getting into dencer ground! This is it!" The gem cried.

They finally then saw it. The Cluster.

Suddenly, the Cluster and its surroundings started to tremor. The women gave shouts of panic.

It started to glow, they were too late! It has already began to form! White matter came up to the drill, pushing it back. It was massive!

"No!" Pearl cried. "It's over! It's all over!"

Connie watched her give a cry as tears slipped down her face.

"I'm sorry." Pearl sniffed loudly, covering her eyes. "I couldn't save you! I was so sure I could…" Connie was surprised when Pearl wrapped her arms around her and pulled her close. "I'm sorry…. I'm so sorry…" The gem whispered over and over into Connie's hair, hugging her like she'd never let go.

Connie blushed, and hugged her back. " I love you, Pearl."

Pearl whispered something back that was muffled in the girl's hair, but it felt along the lines of a mutual response.

The cockpit shook violently, leading the two to clutch onto each other tighter. The lights started to flicker and white hands brushed the side of the drill.

"Wait… it's not forming! It's still trying to!" Pearl gasped in surprise. She grabbed the steering once more and pushed on.

They soon reached the surface of the Cluster.

"We have to do this!" Connie cried, mostly to herself. This was all she could do, there was no other solution but to fight! She needed to fight… didn't she?

The moment Connie's views separated, the girl felt a sudden and large pain in her chest. She gasped in panic and grabbed her chest.

"Connie? What's wrong?!" Pearl asked in a loud voice.

"Argh… I don't know!" Connie moaned, gripping her gem harder.

"Do you need me to stop?! We aren't at the crust!" Pearl cried.

"No!" Connie growled, her eyes clamping shut and teeth gritted. "K-Keep going!"

Pearl pressed on, leading to three separate drills separating. The Cluster's arms were starting to weaken!

However, Connie was still in much pain, and she began to see the cockpit around her disappear, and get replaced by goulish pale faces that were rushing at her. This kept flickering on and off, and she grunted in pain.

One of the drills suddenly broke off, leading Connie to yell out. "One of the drills just came off! Keep balance!"

"Got it!" Pearl cried, trying her best. Connie glanced out the window, nazated. She then saw a humongous pale face, coming straight for her. It opened its mouth in a groan as it came. Connie screamed and knocked back in shock, right into Pearl. A second drill broke off in their struggle.

"I don't think it's going to hold!" Pearl squeaked.

The two were thrown against their seats.

Connie was now clutching her head and chest, panting, sweating. "I… My gem and human selves are struggling, or s-something!" She wrenched out, it hurt to speak.

"What?!" Pearl gasped. "What can I do?!"

Connie's gem suddenly started to glow, she felt her heart like a snare drum in her ears, her eyes were clamped shut. She gave a cry and started panting heavily, gripping her chest, feeling her human heart and Homeworld gem pulsing. She wrenched up in pain.

"Connie! CONNIE!" Pearl yelled.

Connie paid her no mind, all she could see were those faces! Those horrifying faces! She then realized Pearl was no longer by her, she was floating!

"Pearl? Pearl?!" Connie cried. Her gem glowed, and her seat disappeared. She fell into darkness.

When Connie opened her eyes again, for a moment, she thought she was home, that she had fallen asleep looking up at the night sky on the roof with the Temps. However, there was no constellations she could recognize. She then heard the echos.

"Must…"

"Have to…"

"Want to…"

"Need to…"

Connie saw now that there were little gem shards, floating all around her. The girl saw a tiny one float in front of her eyes.

The little shard whispered softly to her. "Want to… need to…"

"Want to? Want to… what?" Connie asked.

A bright, nearly hurting light suddenly immited around Connie. She gasped in surprise.

"FORM!" Many voices screeched.

Connie gave a scream in pain, covering her ears that started to ring. "Ghaa! Stop! Stop!"

The light went down, the voices calmed momentarily.

"These shards, forming… I'm in the Cluster." Connie whispered, realizing it. "This… How?!"

"Have to... Want to... Need to... Must!" The gem shards screamed.

Connie gasped. "No! No, you can't form! Please, don't form!" She begged the Cluster.

The light returned and the gem shards contuied to chant. "Form! Form! Form! Want to form! Want to form! FORM!"

Connie covered her ears, giving a cry. "No! I have to stop you!"

"FORM!"

Connie gave a moan in pain. She clutched her gem, she needed her destablizing powers!

"Need to form!" The Cluster cried. It then softened slightly. "To be whole."

Connie glanced up in suprise. "W-whole? But… I can't help with that, I-I don't know how! ...If only I could help you…."

The Cluster seemed to agree, muttering of yes' and ohs surrounded her.

"Don't want to form, want to stay." The Cluster said. Links between shards formed and Connie watched in amazement. Suddenly, the pulsing painful light filled her eyes and the shards screamed. "Can't stop! Going to form! Can't stop! Going to form! Help! Help! Help!"

"Don't panic, I can help you! Everyone, start bubbling one another, now!" Connie commanded, thrusting out her hands. "I'll help keep you stable as long as I can!"

Yellow beams shot out her hands and surrounded the massive Cluster. She then saw she was floating away.

"Connie?!" Pearl shouted. Connie opened her eyes and gasped.

"It doesn't want to form!" She cried. "I need to protect it! I need to place them in a bubble!"

"What?!" Pearl squawked. "That's impossible!"

Connie glanced out the window and saw bubbles appear on the surface. "They still are going!" She placed her hands on the floor. "Please, please let this work!" She cried.

Her destablizing powers went through the floor and onto the Cluster, it was working, she was doing it!

"A little more!" Connie creid. She then felt a hand in hers and saw Pearl was trying to bubble it too. "You can bubble?!"

"Of course." Pearl said, closing her eyes in effort.

Connie then let out a cry, letting her destablizing finally rest and she switched to bubbling.

The large yellow bubble surrounded the Cluster. It was done, it was safe.

Connie gave a moan, nearly falling asleep with all the energy she had exserted.

The drill climbed out of the hole, finally. Connie let the warm sunshine hit her face.

She hopped out, helping Pearl down as well.

The warp pad suddenly glowed and the Temps appeared.

"Connie!" Peridot screeched, practically tackling her in a hug.

Lapis gave a sigh of utter relief seeing they were okay while Jasper held a uncousince Amethyst.

"You're all okay!" Connie beamed. She then saw her sleeping friend, the one that had done so much than she had to protect their planet. "Amethyst… is she-?"

"This runt's a tough one, she'll be good in a bit." Jasper assured her.

Connie smiled in relief.

"Did you destroy the Cluster?" Peri asked suddenly.

Connie gave a tiny giggle. "No, we bubbled it, while using my powers to keep it stable."

"W-what?!" Lapis gasped in surprise while Peridot dropped her jaw.

"Well… we had a little help." Connie gave a tiny smile, knowing the Cluster was safe…

The Earth was… safe for now.


	81. A Fact About Home

Connie was relaxing, finally. The Temps were gathered on the grass, while Pearl explained her and Connie's recent journey.

"It was very frightening, to be sure. Those mutants came after us, but we fend them off!" Pearl creid. "And then, right when we reached the Cluster, Connie's body started to malfunction, and she collapsed! I don't really know what happened then…" She glanced at Connie, who seemed to be spaced off. "Would you like to tell us, Connie?"

"Hm? Oh, er, yes, I just have to check something."

Connie soon peeked into the barn, trying to see if Amethyst was awake….

The gem was still asleep, and she gave a moan in her dreams, clutching the hay under her.

Connie gave a small sigh.

"Hey, kiddo! Whatcha' doing…" Jasper paused seeing Connie leaned against the doorway. "Is she awake yet?"

Connie solemnly shook her head.

""Well, she will be eventually. She's a tough one." She placed a hand on Connie's shoulder. "Now, you gotta tell me more about you beat the Cluster!"

Connie gave a weak laugh, turning away from Amethyst. "I suppose she isn't going anywhere…"

"Connie! Connie!"

A familiar voice was whispering in her ear.

Connie yawned slightly and brushed sleep out of her eyes before seeing Amethyst, awake.

"A-Amethyst!" Connie cried. Amethyst shushed her, looking serious until a big grin appeared on her face.

She grabbed Connie up in a hug, making the girl laugh as softly as she could. "Oh man, I sure missed you, kid!"

"You're… back to your normal self!" Connie said, with surprise and suspicion in her voice.

Amethyst gave a laugh. "Why would I ever change?"

"You were trapped in Sugilite for months, you sounded so scared-"

"Oh, were you worried about me?" Amethyst said in a tone one would speak to a human baby. She wrestled Connie around a bit before Connie told her to stop.

"You mean, it didn't affect you at all?"

"Kiddo, nothing affects me!" Amethyst grinned.

Connie frowned, but soon tried to ignore that. "Er, well, will you be staying with us? I could always set you up in the barn, you know, Pe-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow your roll, Con-man. You think I'm staying here? With the Temps?"

"Well, I assumed-!" Connie tried to say, but Amethyst cut her off.

"Connie, I'm not staying here, okay?" Amethyst asked darkly and coldly.

"Okay…" Connie sighed. "Then, where will you live?"

"Um… you know… somewhere." Amethyst shrugged with a blush.

"Why can't you stay?" Connie asked with clear disappointment.

Amethyst shook her head. "I just can't, squirt." She then smiled weakly. "But hey! I'll still come back here every now and then, so we can hang out at night, right, summer friend?"

Connie nodded slowly. "I guess."

"Right, welp, I gotta go." Amethyst smiled, jumping onto the warp pad. "See ya around, Connie, and don't tell anyone that we talked, okay?"

"Okay…" Connie only lifted her hand sligthly, watching in dismay as Amethyst warped away.

"I wonder where she went…" Pearl muttered, looking at the shifted pile of hay.

"I don't know…"

There was a few moments of silence and Connie gave a small cough. "I'm sorry that Amethyst is gone, but do you still want to stay in the barn?"

"I do." Pearl sighed.

Doug had loaded up all the junk from the barn, but hestatied in taking down a picture.

"Well, it looks like we're all packed up, I better take you two home, pumpkin." Doug called, getting Connie's attention.

"Oh, Pearl's going to stay, and… I'm going to ride Lion home." Connie said, sounding unsure as that was indeed what she was doing.

"Okay then. Be safe!" Doug sternly said, but still in a obvious loving tone.

He and the other Temps, excluding Pearl, drove off.

Connie didn't call for Lion though, she instead ran down the hill nearby, leading to a warp pad. She sat down quietly, staring at it. Prehaps if she had Peridot's machine, she could tell when Amethyst was warping, but then the Temps would surely find out…

Suddenly, the warp pad glowed and Amethyst warped in front of her.

"Amethyst! You're back!" Connie gasped. "Where did you go?"

"I tried to go to my home on Earth, but… uh… something came up." Amethyst blushed. She hopped off the warp pad and slid into a sitting position next to her. "So, I need a new place to live, that's not here."

Connie smiled. "I know most of the surrounding areas, I can show you around if you'd like!"

"I… guess?" Amethyst shrugged with a weak grin. She then shapeshifted into a wolf and gave a soft howl, before going under Connie to get her on her back. "Let's blow this popsicle joint!"

Connie gasped as Amethyst started to run, and wrapped her arms around the gem's neck.

"So, there's some open houses in Babe Berg, and a few apartments in-" Amethyst was quick to shrug her off, and quickly eat the map the girl had brought in her small purse.

"Amethyst!" Connie gasped in horror.

"Yum, I feel a lot smarter." Amethyst said, licking her lips. She then gave out a massive burp.

Connie laughed, she then frowned. "How are we going to find you a place to live now?"

"Uh, we explore, duh." Amethyst smirked, letting Connie on her back again.

They soon slowed to a trot once they reached a feild of flowers. Connie sneezed and Amethyst shapeshifted back to her normal self.

"You could live here, and find yourself a bit, it's really lovely, all the flowers and such… I heard that sometimes being alone is a good coping mechanism for some things, but then again, so is being with trusted friends so-" Connie stopped when Amethyst shrugged.

"Nah. This place is too pretty for my liking, I need somewhere I can mess up!" Amethyst cried. Connie thought for a moment then snapped her fingers in a idea.

Amethyst soon was a large bird, with Connie hanging on her back.

They landed at a swamp, and Connie hopped off.

"This place is surrounded by mud, and water, no one would care if you played around with it." Connie smiled, showing Amethyst a frog.

Amethyst frowned. "Yeah… this is great, but something feels missing…"

"Company?"

"No."

"A persistent landlord?"

"I don't even know what that is."

"Oh! Are you upset because you aren't close enough to the city? All the people, lights, food-"

"What's… food?"

"Oh man, this is awesome!" Amethyst said with her mouth full. She took another bite of pizza and then a bite of a hotdog.

Connie laughed. "I thought you might like it!"

They were now in Empire City, Amethyst wanted to try everything. "So, there's food here, all the time?"

"Pretty much!" Connie beamed cheerfully. "However, you would need to get money to pay for it."

Amethyst choked slightly. "What's that?"

"Er, paper currency that you trade for all sorts of things. You'd have to work for it."

"Work? I've been working for months." Amethyst motioned for Connie to get on her back, and the gem ran off, to where, she had no clue.

"Be careful!" Connie yelled through her squeals of excitement. Amethyst smirked. The gem used her whip to swing them to the other side of a mountain crevice. They then leapt swiftly up the rocks, to the top.

Connie practically rolled off and Amethyst slumped down beside her.

"Nice view, huh?" Amethyst smiled, seeing Connie's diamond eyes.

They sat on top if the high mountain, the view was extraordinary. Everything seemed so tiny, yet so detailed at the same time…

Amethyst shapeshifted into a bird immediately, and quickly flew from the ground, high as she could, to the point where she could only barely see Connie.

"Are you okay?" Connie called.

"WHAT?"

"ARE YOU OKAY?!"

"OH, YEP! DOING GREAT! SO,WHY ARE WE HERE?"

Connie soon pointed to a rocky place, just below them. "LOOK! IT'S A KINDERGARDEN!"

Amethyst glanced at where she was pointed and gave a short nod. "YEAH?"

"JUST, COME DOWN HERE!" Connie yelled. Amethyst fluttered slightly closer, her teeth slightly gritted as she did.

Connie stood and ran to the edge of the cliff to see the edge of the Prime Kindergarten. "Let's go check it out, see if you'd like it there! You were made there, right?"

"Um…yeah. But I don't feel like going down there." Amethyst shrugged.

"Why not?"

"Just not feeling it, okay?" Amethyst called.

"But, this could be the perfect place!" Connie protested, stepping closer to the edge, looking slightly annoyed.

"Trust me, it's not!" Amethyst growled.

"How do you know?!" Connie yelled.

Amethyst then flew down, and right into Connie's face. She looked angry. "Because, It's where my team left me!" Connie looked shocked, and backed up. She suddenly gave a cry, slipping off.

"CONNIE!" Amethyst screeched. She shapeshifted back to normal, leaping after the girl.

Amethyst threw out her whip, and it wrapped around Connie's waist.

They slid to the ground, and Amethyst ran up. "Hey, hey, you okay?"

"I'm fine." Connie whispered, still in shock. "But tell me what happened here…"

"Well… When I first emerged, thousands of years ago, I was overcooked, a mistake." Amethyst sighed. "I was alone for a while, not knowing a war was happening, until one day, a Rose Quartz soldier who had snuck away from the battle, had found me. Over the years, after the gem war, I became Rose's personal Amethyst, and I protected her with my life. I was loyal to Rose, but her mercy didn't save me from the ridacul all Homeworld gave me." She shuddered slightly. "Some… tried to shatter me."

"What?" Connie gasped.

"One day, I got sick of it, sick of getting threatened, or hurt, or teased by some of the gems closest to me." Amethyst walked to the warp pad. "And so, one day in secret, I planned to meet the Crystal Temps, and… well, join their rebellion."

"No way…" Connie breathed. "But, why do you not want to be a Temp anymore? You're free."

"I'm getting to that." Amethyst moaned. She then looked away from Connie and to the night sky. "I only told one gem my plan… and she sold me out. She… betrayed me, and told her misstress, who told Pink Diamond. Pink Diamond was furious at me, and as a punishment for my near betrayel, she poofed me, and trapped me in the mirror, just for wanting to not to be threatened any more… Soilders left me here, and threw me so hard on the ground, my gem cracked. I stayed there for who knows how long, until… I was found."

"Amethyst, I had no idea-!" Connie started but Amethyst gave a chuckle.

"It doesn't matter. Come on, let's get you home."

Connie looked concerned, and grabbed a pebble from the ground.

"I'm still trapped here, this isn't my home, nowhere is." Amethyst sighed.

Connie sat on the roof of the barn with Amethyst, thinking on what to say. She lightly threw the stone, accidentally scaring a bird who squaked before finding a new place to sit. It settled, looking relaxed again. Connie caught a feather that came off and smiled slightly. "... Well, a fact about home is that you always return to it, maybe not in the same place, but in the end, your heart makes your home out of nothing but feelings of joy, safety, comfort, sometimes maybe some sadness, but it's still home." She gave Amethyst the feather.

"Yeah…" The gem fingered the feather with a small pout. She then gave a tiny smile. "Yeah!"

Amethyst then stood and smiled broader. "I feel fine here, I guess. And, I'm happy with my favorite…" The gem seemed to be wondering whether to say human or gem… "...Connie."

"Wait, here? Really?!" Connie cried in suprise.

Amethyst smirked. "Yep! So, where can I stay?"

"Come on! You can stay here! In the barn with-"

"Sweet!" Amethyst scooped up Connie and leapt down to the ground. She looked at the barn, inspecting it. "Yeah, I could live here."

"Amethyst! You're okay?"

Amethyst turned to see Pearl.

The other gem realized she must look too relieved and dropped her hands to her side.

"Pearl?!" Amethyst gasped.

Pearl gave a tiny wave. "Um… I hope you didn't get into too much trouble with Garnet."

Amethyst blinked and then again.

Pearl gave a nervous laugh.

And then, without warning, Amethyst then gave a war cry and tackled her to the ground.


	82. Barn Mates

"Let me go!" Amethyst huffed, trying to kick away from Jasper who held her back.

"Easy girl, easy." Jasper chuckled, patting her head like she was a dog.

Connie watched her and hesitantly knocked on the bathroom door. "Pearl, she's getting restless!"

"Uh, in a moment!" Pearl called back from inside.

Connie gave a sigh. "Pearl, Amethyst isn't going to just leave if you stay in there."

Pearl slowly opened the door and peeked out. "Why can't you talk to her?"

"Because, this is between you and Amethyst, whatever it is. If you two are going to live together, you have to at least tolerate one another."

Pearl gave a sigh and inched out of the safety of the bathroom.

Pearl gave a tiny cough. "So… I know we aren't on the best of terms, but I want you to know I'll make a effort to change if you do. You can't stay anywhere else, so perhaps we can start over?" She held out her hand and Jasper slowly let Amethyst down, she had calmed.

"Why would I ever want to stay here with you?" Amethyst hissed angrily.

Pearl blushed. "Er… you don't have much of a choice."

"I'm not going to stay with Pearl, Connie. She trapped me here, she let me be put in a mirror!" Amethyst snapped. Connie flinched and lead the two over to the barn.

"It's okay, er, prehaps if I… uh…" Connie seemed out of ideas.

"I'm not staying with her." Amethyst whispered icly, stomping past Connie.

"I'm so sorry, Pearl… I guess I thought that you two were a team, and that you'd sorta click again."

Pearl sighed with a small smile. "We never clicked, Connie. We always were forced to be near each other on Homeworld, she being Rose's guard and I her Pearl. After she couldn't get me to speak to her at first, she got upset, because I was the only one other than her misstress. We never talked, so when I finally spoke, it was suprising… and only when Rose wasn't around. And when she came back, I convinced her to sneak me on board to Earth."

"And then you two found us." Connie ended it softly.

"Yes. She must still being hanging on the past like always, it's not my fault she tried to rebel."

"Did you ever wonder why?" Connie asked with a eyebrow raised.

"Of course not. It wasn't my place to question things." Pearl said hotitly.

Connie then thought of something. "Prehaps if you write her a letter!"

Pearl thought about this and then gave a curt nod. "I suppose that would work…."

Connie gave her a pencil and paper, and Pearl started to work.

"Oh, Amethyst! I have something for you!" Pearl called to the gem, who sat on the warp pad dejectedly.

"I don't want anything from you." Amethyst growled.

"Let me try." Connie whispered. She took the letter and popped next to Amethyst.

"Oh, hey." Amethyst sighed, seeming bored. "What's up?"

"Well, Pearl wrote you this letter!" Connie said, giving Amethyst the paper. Amethyst didn't open it though. Connie looked a bit embarrassed. "S-Sorry, I just...

"I can't read this."

Connie glanced up and Amethyst pointed to the swirly neat handwriting Pearl had put down. The girl took it and read it out loud. "Amethyst, I am sorry for all the things you must've gone through on Homeworld, however, it is to be expected, so I don't understand why you're still acting like a child… about… it." Connie gave a nervous laugh and folded up the letter gently.

Amethyst looked at Pearl with a death glare.

"I don't understand! I wrote it with my feelings, and I at least thought it was somewhat good. Why won't she just accept that? She always accepted all the other things." Pearl sighed, stomping into the barn.

Connie followed, walking while thinking up a plan. She then gasped in a idea. "Lunch! You two could have a lovely lunch, together! Amethyst likes food, so I'm sure if you two talk over food, she'll be more accepting."

Pearl looked confused. "What's food?"

"Here we go again."

"Kid, where are we going?" Amethyst asked, Connie leading her in the grass near the Beach House.

"Just keep walking up this hill." Connie said, waving to Pearl who sat on a picnic blanket.

They reached it and Connie uncovered Amethyst's eyes. "Ta da!"

Amethyst immediately started to walk away. The human was persistent though and grabbed her arm.

"Amethyst! Please?" Amethyst glanced back to see Connie hugging her arm with diamonds in her sad eyes. "Pretty please?" She now hugged tighter. "PLEASE STAY!"

"Ugh! Fine." Amethyst growled, shaking the girl off. Connie grinned. Amethyst deep down couldn't stand to disappoint her, just like Jasper.

Amethyst thundered down on the opposite side of Pearl and saw a pizza box. Her eyes immediately changed from bored to stars. "Food?!"

The gem opened the box and messily started to gobble down a slice. Pearl winced slightly.

Connie watched them and Pearl looked at her for help. The girl gave a nod in the pizza's direction. The gem looked at it and gingerly picked up a slice. Amethyst stopped chewing and swallowed, as if wanting to see this. Pearl took a tiny bite and swallowed.

She gave a small smile to Amethyst who seemed to be wanting her to eat more.

Pearl took a bigger bite and turned away so the other couldn't see her face of revolt. She gave a gulp.

Amethyst wasn't impressed, and grabbed the box before walking over to Connie. "For the last time, I want to be alone!" The gem stomped off and then stopped and yelled after her. "With this food, and no one else!"

Connie winced and glanced at Pearl, who looked disappointed.

"I… tried! I really tried, its just… ghaa! I don't like that gross feeling of it going through me!" Pearl moaned. Connie walked up and patted her shoulder.

"Maybe… give her a gift? Something you like, that you'd think she'd enjoy!"

"... Hm… A memory pack! For a controller!" Pearl cried.

"Okay… Would you let her play a game?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Connie, of course not!" Pearl laughed.

"Then a memory pack is useless." Connie insisted, crossing her arms.

Pearl gave a huff. She then pulled out her tape recorder and sighed. "Log date… Ugh! Amethyst won't accept me! She is stubborn and rude, and utterly disgusting!" She then smiled and gently caressed the recorder. "At least I have you! You're the only thing that calms me… down."

"Well?" Pearl cried with a smile, holding out the tiny box that was wrapped in a curly purple ribbon. "At least… say something!"

Amethyst glanced at the gift, then at Pearl, then back at the gift, a bored expression on her face.

"So, the ribbon's purple, because I know you like purple! Also, I curled the ribbon, and I even made a tag, it has your name on it…" Pearl contuied to list off things as Amethyst untied the ribbon. Pearl looked at it with care as Amethyst took the recorder out.

"Connie gave this to me. You can talk into it and exsplain all your complex feelings about how much you miss home, and Rose-"

"Rose! It always has to be about Rose, doesn't it?!" Amethyst yelled, breaking the recorder in her fist. "Rose, Rose Rose! Why do you always have to talk about her?!"

Pearl blushed and bowed her head. She then gritted her teeth and snapped her head back up, tears in her eyes. "Because I used to-! … Amethyst, I don't care about Rose anymore, she used me, and she used you even more, and I'm sorry I never saw that. But I know it now, and I'm trying to make it up to you!"

"You want to know how you can make it up to me?" Amethyst snarled. "You can pay!"

The gem summoned her whip and smacked Pearl away. Connie gave a cry in horror and Pearl gave a yell in pain as she hit the ground.

Pearl held back tears, and struggled to get up.

Connie felt her anger boil up, and snapped her head to Amethyst. "Why did you do that?!"

Amethyst winched and looked slightly afraid. She tried to regain a calm face but failed.

"She was just trying to apologize!" Connie snarled. "She wrote you a letter, she had a picnic and put stuff she hates into her mouth, gave you her most valuable possession, all for you!" The girl cried, her voice cracking slightly at the last word.

Amethyst backed away as Connie stepped closer, her finger pointing into Amethyst chest in anger.

They suddenly heard a screech and turned to see Pearl running to them. Suddenly, a ginormous round ship emerged from behind the hill, Connie gasped in surprise. She recognized that ship!

Pearl ran to Connie and shoved her behind.

Suddenly, the ship let out a massive yellow beam that spotlighted the gems.

"Run, just run!" Connie yelled. They did so, and ran right to the barn, Connie panting for air.

"That's a Red Eye! I've seen one before!" Connie whispered.

"I know! That one was meant to find any gems, it was meant to find you all. This one is after me!" Pearl said in a hushed voice.

"YOU?!" Amethyst growled. "You brought them here?!"

"If you had been listening, you'd know I betrayed Rose! And Pink Diamond!"

Amethyst's eyes softened into suprise. "... What?"

Suddenly, the same beam of light came through the hole in the wall Pearl had made days before.

Connie gasped and Amethyst was quick to grab her and heave the girl over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Pearl was frozen in shock and couldn't move when Amethyst started to run.

Amethyst stopped and turned to her. "Pearl! Come on!"

Pearl was shaking now.

"Pearl!" Amethyst yelled. She threw out her whip and it wrapped around Pearl's waist. Before the gem even had a chance to look, Amethyst pulled her over.

Pearl landed next to them and looked at Amethyst with suprise. "You… saved me."

"Yeah, yeah, don't look into it." Amethyst growled. The ship followed them out and Pearl gulped.

Amethyst gently placed Connie down, her eyes shadowy. "Kid, get behind me, now."

Connie hid behind her and pulled Pearl to her.

"Get ready for a show." Amethyst hissed. The gem gave a howl and leapt into the air. Two whips snapped out of her gem and she wrapped them around the ship. She started to fall, and shapeshifted into her wrestling form. The gem then slammed on the ground, making it shake under her. Connie and Pearl fell over as she pulled the ship closer to the ground. The gem then pounded it to the ground with her mighty fists like it was a volleyball.

"Oh, wow." Pearl breathed, staring at the ship.

"CONNIE!" Peridot screeched, running over to the girl. She bent down and hugged her. "Thank goodness you're safe!"

Jasper and Lapis were close behind.

Lapis gasped in suprise, whispering the same words as Pearl had. "Oh, wow."

"Kid, you okay?" Jasper asked.

Peridot hugged the girl tighter. "I don't see any damage to your pyshical body, is your mental state alright as well?"

"I'm okay." Connie sighed in relief, glancing at Amethyst. "Amethyst saved us, that ship must've been out to find Pearl."

Pearl blushed and jumped a bit when she heard Amethyst say her name.

Pearl turned. "Um… yes, Amethyst?"

"Are you… you know… okay?" Amethyst mumbled, as if not wanting to ask, but Pearl could tell she meant it.

"O-Oh!" Pearl smiled, sniffling a bit. "Yes, I'm quite all right, thank you."

Amethyst blushed slightly when Pearl smiled at her. She looked not angry, but suprised.

Connie giggled, but that joy didn't last long.

The Temps and Amethyst heard a sound and turned to see a hatch of the ship opening, with steam gushing out. And then… a Homeworld gem, a Jasper, popped her head out.

 **Hey everyone. Sorry I haven't updated in a bit, I haven't felt very in the mood lately... I was thinking to myself, and wondering how and why you all like my writing, it is in the same format as Rebeca Sugar's after all. I don't know if I'm any good at writing... I found that now, I'm sorta afraid to write my own stories and that honestly saddens me. I was thinking I could maybe start writing a few chapters/stories where I can let my creative juices flow. I was thinking maybe one about Connie as a baby, and the Temps trying to babysit her for the first time, something like that. What do you all think? Also, sorry I vented a bit there, I'm fine guys, really. I just want to know what you all are thinking! Ok, well, bye!**


	83. Quartzerfcation Round

The Crystal Temps gasped in surprise as the bulky Homeworld Jasper looked out at them with curiosity.

"She… looks like you." Connie whispered to Jasper.

The Temps' Jasper gave a growl and grabbed Connie, running her out of the sight of the others.

The Jasper hopped out, her gem on her right hand.

Another Jasper, with her gem on her forehead, stuck her head out, and jumped to ground, smelling the fresh air. "Home sweet home!" She smirked.

One more big Jasper, gem on her back like Lapis, followed her out and looked happy at her surroundings. She turned to the ship and sighed. "Come on, kid."

Finally, a skinny and a bit shorter Jasper popped her head out and was helped out of the ship by a bigger one.

They didn't see the young hybrid looking out at them. "Whoa… There's tons of them."

Amethyst peeked out of the barn and gave a small frown.

"Oh no… Rose sent them after us! Me especially!" Pearl moaned, sliding to the ground. She glanced at Amethyst. "They may let you live, but they'll shatter me for certain!"

"Calm down." Amethyst said softly. "They won't shatter anyone, they'll just bring them to Homeworld,-"

"To be shattered by Rose herself!" Pearl cried. "What a horrifying honor!"

"Everyone shut up." Jasper hissed.

Lapis peeked out a bit more. "Do you think they'll believe we're humans?"

"No, we may look dumb, but we're not blind." Amethyst replied, seeming offended.

"Yeah." Jasper agreed. "I'm smart, Lapis, you know that."

"I-"

"Lazuli! Shh!" Peridot squealed. "I can't hear what they're saying! All we have to do is keep Connie here until-"

"Hey there, little guy, what are you called?"

They turned to see Connie was gone and they all nearly froze in fear seeing one of the Jasper, the one with a gem on her head, had pinned Connie to the ground, and the girl was crying out, kicking.

"CONNIE!" They all cried. All ran out to save her, Pearl and Amethyst froze when seeing the other Jasper glance up and Pearl ran back to the barn in fear, pulling Amethyst away with her.

"GET AWAY FROM MY-" Jasper stopped when she heard Connie's giggles.

"Ha, ha, ha! Hey! That tickles!" Connie laughed, clutching her belly.

"It's ticklish! That means it's a human, right?" The Jasper asked another. They all weren't as wide as Jasper, and lacked a few inches in height. The runt of them reached their forearm.

"Um… Are we missing something?" The Temps' Jasper asked, helping Connie up.

The group of Quartz looked up and gasped.

"Whoa! Look at you!" The defective one gasped. "You're perfect! That's pretty cool."

"Kid, quiet." One Jasper growled. She glanced back to the Temps. "Why are you three here, with that human?"

"How could you not recognize us right away?" Lapis suddenly said in a snooty voice. "Did you not hear that Pink Diamond sent us out to find this meddlesome child?" Connie flinched when Lapis gripped her shoulder hard as if trying to restrain her. "After those Crystal Gems failed, she sent us, I'm supervising so these fools don't mess it up, understood?"

"Yes, your clarity!" The entire group said. Lapis smirked and pushed Connie to Jasper.

"Hold it, it disgusts me." Lapis gagged. Connie frowned and Lapis winked.

Jasper quickly changed the subject. "So… why are you guys here?"

"Oh, we're actually here for the Crystal," The Temps' gems glowed and waited to see if they should attack. "Gems."

"Wait, the Crystal... Gems?" Lapis asked confused.

"Y-Yeah…" One with her gem on her chest muttered, a tiny blush appearing seeing Lapis. "Um, they're Lady Rose Quartz's lackies. You should know that."

Pearl and Amethyst from inside the barn cringed at the word 'lackies'. Amethyst grabbed a tennis racket to go out and tell them off, but Pearl held her back. Lapis noticed from the yard.

"They ran off a while ago and Rose wants us to find them."

Connie frowned nervously and quickly put her shirt over her gem, they hadn't seen it yet… She tried to look afraid, as Jasper held her. "Please, don't take me away! I have a father, and a barn!"

"Huh. Well, in that case, we're gonna search your barn, kiddo."

Two large Jaspers moved them all aside and were about to search and find the Temps' friends, when Lapis suddenly grabbed one of their arms.

"Wait! Uh…" The Jaspers looked down at her with confusion. "You can't!"

"What is it, your clarity?"

"I have found interest… in a human tradion, soilder." Lapis was searching for something, anything. She then thought of the tennis racket. "It is Tennis!"

"What?" The Temps' Jasper grunted. "I did not see that coming. Lapis, I'm finishing this." She tried to run at the group and poof them all in one blow, and the group were ready for it.

"Yes! Battle!" Skinny cried.

"STOP!" Lapis boomed, scaring them all. "I order you all to compete with us, if you win, you search the barn, if you lose you leave this planet, forever!"

"That sounds fair!" The skinny one cried.

Later, Connie, Lapis, Jasper, and Peridot were all dressed in baseball attire.

"We are the… Earth team!" Connie announced.

They all posed, saying their names.

"Connie!" The girl announced.

"Jasper!"

"Peridot!"

"And Lapis!"

The group watched with surprise, the four of them stepping forward as well.

"And, uh, we are the Homeworld team!" A Jasper announced.

"Jasper!"

"Jasper."

"Uh, Jasper?"

"And Jasper!"

They soon started to play.

"Each player has a maximum of one bounce after it has been hit by their opponent to return the ball over the net and within the boundaries of the court."

Connie hit the ball over, she was a expert at Tennis. A Jasper gasped and fumbled with the ball, bouncing it between her hands until it hit the dirt.

The Temps gave a cheer.

"Once a player fails to do any of these three things, her opponents wins a point."

Skinny, however, seemed to also have a knack for Tennis, and quickly picked up on it. She scored a point for her team, leaving the Temps more then enough worried. "The aim is to win enough points to win a game and enough games to win a set and enough sets to win a match. And whoever wins this one match, well, wins!"

Lapis soon was ready to hit that ball back. She glanced at her team with a reassured smile.

"You got this, Lazuli!" Peridot cheered nearby.

"Lazuli?"

Peridot looked over to see the other team staring with utter shock.

"I know, not the best name, huh." Lapis smirked, blowing a bang out of her face. She waited and then frowned. "Is something wrong?"

"Your Clarity, it's just, ah, we assumed you would reprimand the Peridot harshly, seeing as you are so high above her and she called you by your gem name, and in such a casual manner too." The skinny one whispered.

"I… um…."

"So, can we keep playing? I'm gonna serve the ball now!" A Jasper suddenly called, she hit it before Lapis could react. They had scored.

Connie bit her lip and huddled her team. "We can't be nice right now, just act like your Homeworld counterpart would."

Lapis nodded. "Sorry… I wish they would stop treating me like some goddess, it's freaking me out."

"You'll get through it, Laz. And once this is over, we're gonna celebrate!" Jasper smiled.

Lapis gave a tiny grin back and Peridot clapped to break the talk.

They tried their best to maintain score, but whenever the other team congratulated Lapis everytime she played, she got distracted. Even when she lost the point they congratulated her!

Connie was getting nervous. The Homeworld gems were winning! And also, they had broke one of her tennis rackets… She ran to the barn to get more when Amethyst and Pearl pulled her aside.

"Well? Are you winning?" Pearl asked timidly.

Amethyst smirked and ruffled the girl's hair. "She's gotta be, Connie's a pro…."

Connie bowed her head in shame. "They keep unwittingly throwing Lapis off, they keep showing her rank, and she hates it."

"Hm. I know how that feels…" Amethyst whispered. Pearl nervously fiddled her thumbs. "Hey, after this next match, call a break and get you and Lapis over here."

Soon, that match was over, and the two Temps walked into the barn.

"You wanted to talk to… me?" Lapis asked, eyebrows raised.

"Don't get me wrong, I still don't care for you or your sissy group, excluding Connie, I'm saving my own skin, got it?"

"Right…"

"My advice to handling dealing with your rank is just accepting it. If they treat you like the best, you act the best, that's what Homeworld's would do. As for me, I ignore it, you have it way better." Amethyst muttered angrily, crossing her arms.

"And once we win this," Connie smiled at Lapis.

"We'll celebrate." Lapis smirked, repeating Jasper's words.

They were all soon on the beach again, ready to play. This was it. Thanks to Connie, they managed to get tied with the Homeworld group, this was the final point needed, the fate of their friends and themselves as well.

"This is it." Jasper whispered through gritted teeth. "We've got this, Temps… We always got this."

Peridot firmly nodded.

Lapis gave a grunt in determination.

"Don't listen to them, Lapis, just listen to us. We love you for your real self, and that's what's going to win this game…" Connie said softly.

Lapis smiled slightly.

"Here it comes, Your Clarity!" A Jasper served finally, and the ball came whirring at her.

Lapis readied herself, gripping the racket hard. She gave a yell when it hit, and nearly the entire ocean behind her went up in her moment of triumph as it soared to the other side and hit the ground. They had won!

Jasper gave a "Woo-hoo!" while laughing happily.

"Yeah! We did it!" Connie squealed, running into a hug from Lapis.

Peridot ran up as well and smirked. "Well done."

Both Peri and Jasper had their hands on Lapis, and in their combined joy and relief, they started fusing.

Connie stumbled away and gasped, as did the Homeworld group.

The fusion hugged herself with a beam of a smile plastered on her face. "I won! I did it!" She then froze and saw them all watching. She poofed back to three and a Jasper gave a growl.

"Your kinds aren't allowed to fuse… You aren't allowed to mix, you should know that, who are you?"

Lapis gave a tiny cough. "W-We were just so-"

"Wait… the three of you would never be able to make that stable of a fusion, …." The skinny Jasper glared at them with fury. "unless you did it before. Who is your leader, and where are our gems?!"

Connie ran to her friends, readying for a fight.

"Attack!" A Jasper screeched. All of the quartzs ran at the Temps, weapons now out and ready…

"STOP!" A clear and loud voice yelled. Pearl leaped in front of the Temps and put out her hand in defiance.

There was a moment of shocked silence when it was shatter by Amethyst leaping beside her, panting.

"Pearl, the next time, tell me when you're going to leap in front of a small army?" Amethyst panted to her, whip ready.

"Wait, 8XM?" A Jasper asked dropping her club.

"Yeah, yeah, hey. Missed me?" Amethyst sighed sounding bored.

"This is where you've been hiding? With the Pearl?" Skinny gasped.

"Oh, no, I've only been here for a few hours."

Amethyst shrugged. "But, we won't let you hurt these gems, so back off sis."

"But Rose is looking for you, she wants you two back to her." A diffrent bulky gem said.

"Yes, well… we're not coming…." Pearl answered her shakily.

Skinny stepped forward with a frown. "Not coming? But Rose will punish us if we don't bring you back."

"I just want to stay here, on Earth, home, a little longer guys…" Amethyst whispered, she then walked forward. She then gave a sigh. "I… I'm sick and tired of getting made fun of for being wrong! Gems here don't view me like that! I don't want to be afraid that I'm going to be shattered when I'm not with you anymore! Just… please… let me stay here!"

A Jasper frowned. "We wish we could, runt, but if we don't bring you, Rose will punish us…"

"Unless you say that you couldn't find us, but found Garnet instead." Pearl suggested. Everyone looked at her with surprise. "I mean, Garnet is much more valuable than us, and Rose will get answers from her, right?"

"I guess…" One said, pondering the idea.

Pearl then cringed slightly from what she was about to say now, she hated lying to them, but she had to to save herself and Amethyst. "Garnet's, uh, on Neptune, at the moment… Just go find her, and Rose will dispatch a diffrent team to get us later. That will give us enough time to say goodbye. And since their team won, you have to leave anyway, so there."

The Jaspers stared at her.

"Get outta here!" Amethyst yelled, making them flinch as she cracked her whip.

The group started to walk back to their ship, but the skinny one stayed back to smile at Jasper, who was confused by the gesture.

Skinny walked up and smirked. "Thanks, big sis. … Are you sure you don't want to come back with us? Pink Diamond would probally love a perfect Jasper like you guarding the-."

"Heh, no." Jasper answered bluntly. She narrowed her eyes. "I'm fine where I am, thanks."

"Okay, well, I'm sure you'd be great." Skinny replied. She spun around and walked back to the ship.

They soon took off, finally leaving Earth through a black portal.

"That was exhausting, they tried to fight you, Jasper." Connie moaned, nearly falling into Lapis.

Jasper smirked. "Yep. It was pretty cool."


	84. Sparks of Emotion

***Watches a Single Pale Rose* Ah... um... ghaa... UHHH! THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING!**

Connie and the Temps were finally home. They had had a long mission that involved earthquakes, funny shenanigans, but that's another story.

"Finally, we're home!" Connie cried. She immediately ran up to her room and flipped on the bed, rubbing her face on the soft blankets. "Oh, I missed my bed! I've been sleeping on rocks for days!"

She got up again and grabbed a book, smelling the pages. "I missed that smell of books!" She then smiled. "I need to see Steven!"

"Steven!" Connie cried, leaping into a tackle hug to him. They laughed.

"How was your mission? Did you find anything cool?" Steven asked hopefully.

"I found this rock!" Connie beamed, pulling a smooth rock from the large pocket of her yellow romper.

"Cool…" Steven whispered, stars in his eyes.

Connie gave a chuckle. "You can have it if you want." She gave it to him, closing his hand around it.

"Thanks!" Steven cried. Then, his stomach grumbled. He looked down and laughed. "My tummy's a rumbling!"

"Mine too." Connie smiled. "I haven't had real food in a few days!"

Steven linked his arm with her a smile. "Shall we go to the Big Doughnut?"

"Sure." Connie smiled.

They soon were there, munching on doughnuts. Connie loved doughnuts, despite it being high in carbs, the Temps didn't exactly stop her.

Steven glanced at the menu. He took out his wallet and looked at Connie. "I'll be right back."

The boy stood up and walked over to the fridge of frozen treats. He opened it and pulled out two Cookie Cats. He walked up to the front and bought them before walking back to Connie.

"Here." Steven said softly, giving Connie one.

Connie tilted her head and unwrapped it. "Are you okay?"

Steven grinned at her. "Yeah!" He unwrapped his own and looked at it with a tiny smile. "It's my mom's birthday today…. Cookie Cat was her favorite. Dad said she craved them all the time when she was pregnant with me."

Connie felt her heart swell. She was touched. "Do… you do this every year?"

"Yep!" Steven smiled. He thoughtfully took a tiny bite and chewed.

Connie was silent until she thought of a question. "What was her name?"

"Lilly, like the flower." Steven said smiling. He opened his wallet and pulled out a folded paper. The moment he unfolded it, Connie realized it wasn't paper at all, it was a picture of a woman.

Lilly was a kind looking woman with smiling eyes and lips. She was quite big, but Connie didn't mind that. She had puffy brown hair and dark brown eyes. Connie recognized Steven's hair from her right away. But there was also her nose, and her bushy eyebrows.

"Wow… She looks wonderful, Steven. I wish I could've met her." Connie whispered, giving Steven back the photo.

Steven gave a weak smile, putting it back. "Me too."

There was silence until Connie gave a little cough. "What should we do now?"

"Funland?"

"That's sounds like a great idea." Connie smiled. The friends got up and threw their wrappers in the trash before heading out.

They were surprisingly quiet as they walked to Funland. Connie soon noticed this and looked at Steven. The boy was solemnly looking at the picture of his mother again.

"What… are you thinking about?" Connie asked softly. Steven glanced up in suprise at the sudden sound but soon looked at her.

"Nothing!" Steven chuckled. "... What are you thinking about?"

"I'm thinking that you're worried about something." Connie huffed. "And I'm not going to stop asking until you tell me what."

Steven looked defeated and sighed. "Okay… I was just wondering if my mom would want to go with us if she was here, do you think she'd…

like me?"

Connie stopped walking and turned to him. She narrowed her eyes and grabbed his shoulder. "Steven."

Steven looked a bit shocked. "C-Connie…?"

"Your mother would love you, you are the most lovable person I know! Don't ever doubt that." Connie said with a stern face, squishing his face in her hands.

"Okay." Steven muttered.

Connie let him go and laughed. "Sorry, I have a weird mom instinct."

"It's okay, I think I needed-"

"CONNIE! WHERE WERE YOU?!"

Connie turned and saw Ronaldo running at her. He soon got to her, and shoved Steven out of the way.

"Did you see that beam of light yesterday?! What was that? Did you Crystal Temps have-"

Connie heard a gasp from behind her. She turned to see Steven on the ground, in front of a puddle. She walked up to him and also gasped. There in that soggy mess was the picture of Lilly.

Connie saw Steven staring down, clearly heartbroken. The girl snapped her head back to Ronaldo, furouis.

"You ruined Steven's photo!" She cried, not noticing her hands start to glow yellow.

Ronaldo shrugged. "A picture doesn't have anything to do with what we were talking about."

Connie growled and clenched her hands into fists. "It was a picture, of his mom!"

"Well, how was I supposed to know that?"

Connie pulled a angry face with a noise of deep inhale. "You still did it!" She yelled, slamming her hands up.

She was suddenly knocked back with a yell, and electricity shot from her hands, and right into the power lines of the town above.

The rides of Funland suddenly started to go into a sort of hyperspeed. Children screeched in horror and Connie gasped. She felt fear come in her, where in this world did THAT come from?! A new power… A new power she had never used….

"Connie…" Steven whispered, touching her shoulder. Connie breathed heavily, shaking, and in her fear, the rides slowed only a bit.

"I didn't… mean to…" Connie choked. She backed away and then ran to the beach house.

* * *

Connie slammed the door closed as hard as she could, and she glanced up to see her mother's painting had gone crooked in her anger. "PERIDOT!"

The temple door immediately opened and Peridot ran out. She grabbed Connie's face. "Are you hurt?!"

"No." Connie growled.

Peridot frowned seeing the girl's face. "Are you alright?"

"No! When were you going to tell me I had electricity powers?!" Connie cried. She didn't notice the lights were flickering. "I could've hurt someone!"

"Connie-!"

"How do I control it?!" Connie yelled. The lights suddenly made a popping sound and they all went out.

The temple door opened, Lapis and Jasper walked out, having a conversation when they realized what happened.

"Um… is everything okay in here?" Lapis peeped.

Connie merely shook her head. "How do I control my electricity powers that I now have?"

"Your mom had to calm herself to control it. That power only happened when she was angry. To control it, you need to calm down." Jasper exsplained.

"I can't calm down! I…" Connie bowed her head and looked at her hands that were still glowing. "I'm scared."

"Of what?" Lapis asked softly, walking up beside Jasper.

"Of hurting someone, or worst! What if one day a new power shows up, and I… I hurt someone I care about?" Connie asked weakly, sliding to the floor. "I can't calm down when I have no information on my powers. I need you guys to answer all my questions about my powers, all of them, anytime I want, then I will be calm. Please, promise me you'll do that."

The older Temps looked at each other with worry. They didn't know really know that much about Yellow Diamond's powers… But they did know things Connie didn't about them, that she needed to know about them. But they would keep somethings secret as long as they possibly could.

"We promise." The Temps said in unison.

Connie gave a sigh in relief and hugged them all. "Thank you…" She didn't see the electricity of the town return to normal, nor her hands had stopped glowing.

They were silent, and Peridot glanced up at the painting of her Diamond. She hoped she was doing the right thing…

* * *

 **As many probally already guessed, this is meant to replace Steven Floats. And to give you a heads up, Connie's apperance will change this season in a few ways... But I won't tell you how. And yes, I did name Steven's human mother also after a flower.**


	85. Drop Beat Dad

"Later, Mom!" Sour Cream called to Vidalia, waving goodbye as he walked to a cart wagon full of music equipment. "This is gonna be sick." He places his laptop on top of the wagon and smiled.

Connie gave a grunt walking out of the garage carrying 2 big boxes. Her hair was tied into a messy bun so she could work more efficiently.

"Thanks for helping me pack up, Connie." Sour Cream said. He walked up and took the boxes from her. "These are probably heavy for yo-" Sour Cream gave a cry, it was extremely heavy!

"Yeah, I needed something to take my mind off things." Connie shrugged, holding the boxes with one hand.

Sour Cream placed the boxes into the cart, not seeing his stepfather, Yellowtail, walk up with a briefcase full of fish, that water leaked out of. He dropped it when seeing his step son packing up to go.

He walked up and talked to him in his own language, Connie didn't understand it at all, but Sour Cream sure did.

"Ugh. No, I can't be home by 10, I'm doing a show tonight, Yellowtail." Sour Cream growled.

Yellowtail furrowed his eyebrows and started up again, angry.

"It is too a viable career! 80 percent of Germans make their living Deejay'ing! Why can't you just accept that I don't want to be a fishermen like you?" The teen insisted angrily. He then turned and stomped away.

Connie felt awkward and gave a small smile. "Er, have a good night, sir!"

Yellowtail made some sounds back which she assumed was a goodbye to her.

Connie ran up after Sour Cream with concern. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I just can't deal with my stepdad on my case all the time. Why would I want to bring home fish when I can bring home sick beats? If he has to "Ma ma ma" so much about it, he doesn't have to come." Sour Cream muttered with his arms crossed. "Ugh. All that arguing messed up my stomach."

They stopped their walk at the police station and Sour Cream went into to go to the restroom. Connie saw her dad sitting in his car and grinned.

"Dad! Hey!" Connie called, running up to knock on a window of the car.

Doug started in surprise but then smiled. He soon walked out and hugged her. "Hi, pumpkin! What are you doing here?"

"I'm helping Sour Cream move his equipment, he has a show tonight." Connie explained.

"Ah. Fun fact, honey, in the music business, they call that a roadie." Doug informed her. Connie frowned.

"That feels… degrading." She said with a tiny sound. "Anyway, are you on a stakeout?"

"Huh? Oh, no." Doug laughed, looking back it his car. "They said they'll tell me when they come up with something to do, nothing yet…"

"Oh." Connie peeped. She then grinned and tried to cheer him up. "Well, you're the best man on the team, they're probally saving you for the real work, Dad."

Doug smiled and put his arm around her. "Thanks, pumpkin."

Suddenly, a large yellow bus, with blue tinted windows rolled into the parking lot. It looked like something out of a movie!

Doug frowned and walked up. "Excuse me, sir, this is staff parking only, I'm going to have to ask you to-"

The door to the bus opened and a white-haired man walked out, wearing strange attire. Connie recognized him, but Doug did faster.

"Marty." Doug growled.

Connie walked up with her eyes narrowed and Doug held out a hand to stop her.

"It's fine, Connie." He whispered, pushing her behind him.

"Well, well, Star Child, Are you some kind of officer of the law now?" Marty chuckled. "You quit the music biz? Eh, you wouldn't have made it that far anyway."

Connie clenched her hand as a single spark of electricity came out of her finger. What a jerk!

"Yes, well," Doug looked uncomfortable and frowned. "I-I stopped a long time ago, when my daughter was born." He nodded to Connie.

Connie stepped out from behind him and held out her hand straight. She wanted to make her dad look good, and always had to be polite, no matter who it was. "My name's Connie, sir, pleased to meet you."

"Whoa! Didn't know you had it in you, Doug." Marty laughed, making Doug grit his teeth. He ignore Connie's hand and bent down. "Guess I better call you, Star Child Jr."

"My name's Connie, sir." Connie frowned. "And if you feel you have to nickname me, I prefer Diamond Child, thank you." She walked back to her father and grimaced when Marty laughed.

"As I was saying before, Marty, I need you to move, this is parking for officers-"

"You talk too much, Star Child." Marty interrupted Doug. "You and I have some unfinished business." He started to take out a letter from his jacket when Sour Cream walked up.

He didn't notice Marty at first. "Sorry, Mr. U, totally clogged the-" He turned and then finally saw Marty. "WHOA! Dad?!"

"Sour Cream?" Marty whispered, as if realizing that was indeed his son.

"W-What are you doing here?" Sour Cream asked softly.

Marty gave a laugh, clearly still surprised. "Uh...S.C. Oof! Just look at you. When did you get so tall?"

Sour Cream looked a bit upset. "Like, 9 years ago?"

His father chuckled nervously and then cleared his throat. "Sorry I've been gone so long, but you know how the music biz can be, r-i-i-ight?" He put a hand through his hair, as if trying to escape this conversation.

Sour Cream looked mistefied. "No. Can you tell me about it?"

Marty started to exsplain to his son the ins-and-outs of music business, while Connie watched with anger and whisper-hissed to her father. "I honestly wondered if those two were related, but I hoped I was wrong, Sour Cream doesn't deserve such a awful man for a dad!"

"Connie, stay calm." Doug whispered back. "He's his dad, no matter what we think about him, if Sour Cream wants to talk to him, let him."

Connie frowned but soon gave a small nod. "Ok…" She trudged out to the music equipment and avoided listening to Marty's rambling excuses to why he hadn't been around. "Um, Sour Cream? I hate to interrupt you, but should I finish haling this equipment to the warehouse while you two catch up?"

"What's this about equipment?" Marty asked, and saw the metal cart of equipment. Connie frowned as he walked . "Hello! What do you got going on over here, my friend?"

"Just getting ready to set up for this semi-annual deejay night rave thing I do in Beach City." Sour Cream shrugged.

"A rave, you say?" Marty stroked his non-existent beard, the wheels in his head clearly turning. Connie didn't like it. "Hmm... S.C., I have a great idea. I've decided to hang out in Beach City and, um... make up for lost time with you. And while we're... chillin', I'll promote your little engagement." He gave his son his business card.

"What's this shiny card with your contact info on it?" Sour Cream asked with wonder, he had never seen such professionalism.

"Just a little something we pro music types call a laminated business card." Marty smirked.

"That is so legit!" Sour Cream cried.

"Man, you're so lucky your dad's in the biz." Marty chuckled. "throwing a cool semi-annual Deejay rave thing is a classic father-son bonding experience."

Sour Cream frowned. That… didn't sound right. "More classic than fishing?"

"Just wait! We're gonna cram years of bonding into one spectacular event!" Marty laughed, putting his arm around his son.

* * *

Marty was utterly disgusted at the warehouse. "This is it?" He gagged, looking at the equipment. "It's so... puny. I mean, what is this? A concert for ants?"

"Aunts, uncles - music is for everybody." Sour Cream shrugged.

Connie was about to tell him that wasn't what Marty meant, but the teen was pulled away by his dad.

"Listen, buddy, you want to reach people, right?" Marty asked, wrapping a arm around the boy.

"Yeah…" Sour Cream whispered.

"You want to hold them in your little hand, right?" The man looked at Connie and the girl hid slightly behind her hair.

"Uh, I guess so."

Marty then clenched his fist firmly, and made it look like Connie was squeezed his hand. "You want to squeeze them until their eyes pop out!"

"Uh, you lost me a little." Sour Cream said, that sounded way too much…

"What I'm saying is, if you want to bring people in, you can't play out in the sticks! you got to be where the people are!"

* * *

They stood on the beach, and Marty laughed. "Now this is more like it! We'll set up right here in the sand."

"No, not here." Connie said immediately. "I don't know if you remember, Marty, but my father performed here, and only one person showed. Can we go somewhere else?"

Marty suddenly wrapped his arms around both Connie and Sour Cream, and pulled them close. Connie fought the urge to pull away.

"Okay. Can I real talk with you for a second? Real talk." Sour Cream and Connie glanced at him with confusion. "I made a lot of mistakes before, when I was your dad's manager,"

Connie agreed.

"and - real talk? - I was a jerk."

Very true.

"but - real talk - I've learned a lot about myself and the music business since then. So I can tell you, with certainty, things aren't gonna be like last time. Real talk."

He finally released them.

"Wow, Yellowtail never real talks with me." Sour Cream muttered.

"That's what it's like to work with a professional, kid. Now, hold on. I'm gonna work some magic." He turned away from the kids, and went on his phone, most likely calling for more equipment.

* * *

About a hour later, Marty had covered Sour Cream's eyes. "Okay. you ready?" He removed his hand to reveal a large sheet covering the Beach City water tank, and it was a poster of Sour Cream himself, deejay'ing. The poster seemed to pop out at them. "Boom!"

"Wow! Am I... glowing?" Sour Cream asked softly, entranced by it.

"That's right. nothing less for my talented, soon-to-be-famous Dj!" Marty laughed.

* * *

A few minutes later, they were standing in front of a bus, watching official people that were paid for it unload things. Very expensive things for Djaying.

"Wow!" Spur Cream gasped again. His dream kept getting better! "I've only seen gear this good on the internet. Is this for me?"

"It's for us, my main cool cat!" Marty smirked.

His son smiled and once again said. "Wow." Before continuing to speak. "I can totally rave to this."

"Sour Cream," Connie said, walking up. "you look like you have enough help here, but if you need-"

"Star Child Jr., catch." Marty called suddenly and threw lanyard at her.

It promently hit her in the face and she winced. "What…" She looked down to see the tag said, official roadie. "I… I didn't really want this-"

"You're welcome, kid. Now, go help out." Marty said, as if wanting her to leave.

Connie frowned, but put it on and went to unload. She got two extremely heavy looking boxes and carried them out with ease.

"Jeez! Can a girl that small even do that?" Marty cried in surprise.

Sour Cream shrugged.

Connie watched them talking about the set nearby and angrily put down the box. She didn't like that man, he always seemed sinister behind those glinting sunglasses. She looked out at the sunset and was surprised to see Yellowtail, who was watching Sour Cream through binoculars, he looked worried about him…. Connie was too.

* * *

A few hours later, and the stage was all ready. Connie shyly walked out on the stage and there were light cheers for her as the town recognized her.

Connie got on her tip-toes and turned on the microphone. "Um, just here to do a mic check." She said. "Testing… testing 1,2,3, this sounds pretty good." She smiled. Not too loud, or too soft.

She walked off stage and smiled to Sour Cream. "We're all set!"

Sour Cream nodded, excited. "Okay, I guess I'll go out and get started."

Connie was about to let him go when Marty walked up behind him, and stopped the teen.

"That's not how we do things in the music biz." Marty chuckled to his son, as if he had so much to learn. "Let a proper hype man set the stage for you."

"Woah. I've never been properly hyped before." Sour Cream smiled. "Thanks, Dad!"

Marty moonwalked backwards and made little finger guns at him, that must've meant no problem.

The crowd cheered as Marty came on, and random bystander yelling, "It's some random guy!"

"How you feeling, Beach Ci-taay!" Marty called into the mic, making the people cheer excitedly. "You know, I've always been someone with good tastes, so you got to believe me. This show is special to me. It's personal."

Backstage, Sour Cream smiled happily. Connie glanced at his face and couldn't help smiling herself. Despite Marty seeming self-indulgent, he at least cared about his son, and wanted to make him happy. Connie could accept that part of him.

"Because I want to introduce you to a fresh, raw experience, to a whole new flavor," Sour Cream felt his heart swell. His dad was here, he was helping him, he had finally come back home, and it was most likely not to happen, but maybe he could even visit more often. "To a brand new... Soda!"

And those hopes and dream shattered.

"What?!" Sour Cream yelled in anger.

Connie felt her hands ball into fists, and she was suddenly filled with rage. How dare he?! This was his son!

"GUACOLA!" Marty yelled out with excitement. The electric billboard above him lit up with the name and everything else started up a gross neon green shad. Air horns blared and people were very confused.

"That's right. Guacola! The World's first guacamole soda. Each can comes with the power of three whole avocados!" Marty cried, as if that was amazing, and sounded even the slightest appealing. "Now, come on, Beach City. Are you ready to guac?" He took out a can and threw it at Ronaldo, promptly hitting him in the stomach.

The teen gave a groan and fell over as Jenny picked up the can.

Connie picked up a nearby can and opened it, taking a sip. She immediately spit it out. "Ugh! This is utterly disgusting! I actually liked avocados before this!" She threw the can into the garbage, not noticing the yellow sparks coming from it

The crowd was just as upset, Jenny dumping out the can and it falling into a pile of goop.

"That's nasty." Buck grunted.

Ronaldo gave a moan, taking out chips and trying it on them. It still was terrible! "It's not even good on chips!" He yelled in anger.

Connie gave a growl, Marty ruined her father's show, he tried to stop her dad from going back to her mother, he had little to no respect for her, not even calling her by name, and now, he ruined her friend's show! She grabbed a speaker cord and willingly let her powers go into it. She would calm down when Marty was gone.

The music and lights flickered out and Connie glanced at Sour Cream.

"What… where'd the power go?!" Marty growled.

"Get off the stage, and exsplain this! Now!" Connie yelled at him.

"You think I'm going to listen to you?" Marty growled.

"NOW!" Connie yelled louder, the lights and music flickered harshly.

Marty looked frightened at her powers and slowly walked off stage.

"Give him a piece of your mind, Sour Cream, this outage won't be long." Connie whispered.

"Thanks, Connie." Sour Cream grunted, running up the steps to confront his father.

Yellowtail walked up, Connie now realizing he had indeed come. Doug was close behind.

"He let another teen down, not surprising." Doug sighed in disappointment, knowing this had to be Marty.

"I just wanted-" Connie paused seeing Yellowtail stomp away. "Wait! Yellowtail, where are you going?!"

"Dad, you've ruined my show!" Sour Cream cried in anger.

"This isn't your show. How do you think we have this setup, this party bus, these roadies? I've gotta good deal with Guacola. You're lucky I'm letting you in on the ground floor." Marty growled back.

"But I thought this was about making up for lost time, not some lame soda." Sour Cream protested.

"Look, kid, I need this guacola deal, okay? Don't be selfish!"

Sour Cream's eyes widened. Selfish? Selfish?! He gave a grunt in anger, yelling Yellowtail and Onion's language at him. "Muh! Muh muh muh! muh muh muh muh muh! Muh muh muh!" He pointed acusungly at Marty. "Muh-muh!"

"What did you say?" Marty hissed.

"Muh…" Sour Cream blushed and went back to a language his father understood. "Ugh. I said I don't need you or guacola to do what I wanna do! I never have! I can do this show on my own!"

Marty narrowed his eyes. "Fine."

He walked away again from Sour Cream, and Connie let the power back on.

He stomped up to Doug and thrust out an envelope. "Universe, I only came here because I'm legally obligated to give you this."

"Huh?" Doug muttered in surprise, taking it.

"Don't say I've never gave you nothin'." Marty grumbled, seeing Connie run up to her father. The white-haired man glared at her and she happily ignored it. The man then got in his party bus, the roadies had left with the equipment, and drove away finally, no one knowing when or if he would ever come back.

Doug inspected the letter that was labeled, 'Star Child'.

Sour Cream sighed and walked up to Connie on the beach. "Well, I guess that's it. So much for me and the music biz."

"I'm sorry, Sour Cream." Connie sighed softly.

Doug turned slightly, hearing a faint horn. "Does anyone else hear that?"

They then saw Yellowtail riding up in his boat at full speed. The man gave a few yells in his language, waving his arms in a attempt to get thier attention.

"Aw, man! it's my stepdad. He was just waiting for me to fail so he can get me and put me to work on his boat." Sour Cream growled, failing his arms up in defeat. The boat soon ran into the beach, sand pilling up against it. Sour Cream reglugtently walked up. "Fine. Take me to your big smelly boat so I can fish my life away!"

Yellowtail took out a black box and leapt out. "Ma-ma-ma, ma-ma-ma, ma-ma-ma." He said softly.

"It's... my old gear?" Sour Cream frowned, surprised.

"Ma-ma ma-ma-ma-ma-ma ma!" His stepdad replied excitedly.

"What? you want me to play?"

Yellowtail nodded.

"Gee... uh... thanks, Yellow Dad." He smiled, finally accepting him into his family. He offered a handshake.

Yellowtail looked so, so happy. He hugged his stepson, muttering something, and Sour Cream laughed.

"Good one, dad!" The teen then turned to Connie. "Hey, Connie, since you're still my official…" He didn't use roadie, he knew she hated that. "helper, help me set up."

"Of course!" Connie beamed.

* * *

About a half a hour later, and Sour Cream was ready to preform. "Let's kick it!" He called happily, throwing out glow sticks to a cheering crowd.

The town danced and raved, and it included Sour Cream's family, his real family.

Doug and Connie watched from afar, smiling.

"The music busseniess is awfully hard to get into." Doug said matter of factly. "We saw that today."

"Yeah… But Sour Cream is talented, I'm certain he will be just fine." Connie replied softly.

"Even if he doesn't make it big, that boy be okay, as long as he's doing something that makes him happy." Doug smiled, remembering his years as a teen. "And even if it doesn't pay well, it's a good hobby to have." The man took out the letter that Marty gave him and opened it. "You know, it's not always about the money when you do som-" Suddenly a big smile appeared on his face. "By jove!"

"Dad? Are you okay?" Connie asked, peeking over his shoulder. She then saw the check and her eyes turned to diamonds. "Ten million dollars?! That's incredible!"


	86. Mr Doug

Connie, Doug and Peridot all watched the tv screen in Connie's room, waiting.

Then, it came!

A steak hit a grill and sizzled, as a young Marty started to sing to the tune of Comet, which was originally Doug's song. " _From the moment the meat hits the flame, my stomach is growling without any shame._ "

The next shot showed tomato, pickle slices, and lettuce gliding gloriously through the air.

They were then in a burger, next to a drink and fries. The young Marty picked up the burger, and took a huge bite, then winked at the camera. " _And I know in my gut, it's been worth the $5.95._ "

It faded to the logo of the burger joint as the commercial closed. " _Would you like a burger from Pepe's Burgers?"_

"This is amazing, Dad!" Connie cried, hugging her father. "Your song has been so profitable!"

"Apparently, Marty sold my song as a burger jingle, and now I'm rich." Doug smiled. "At first, I admit, I thought it was a scam, but this proves it to be true!"

"That is disgusting." Peridot growled, pointing at the tv which showed a burger with legs, eyes and a moving bun. "That thing is a abomination!"

"Well, yes, the commercial is very odd, but this song," Doug smiled in memory. "This song is the song I played on the night Yellow came to my show…"

Peridot gave a huff. "My Diamond would never indulge a song like that. How did she even look at you, let alone love you, if you made this monstrosity that you call-"

"Peri!"

Peridot glanced back to see Connie with her arms crossed and standing.

"Are you finished insulting Dad?" Connie muttered, tapping her foot.

"You don't tell me what to do!" Peridot yelled suddenly, and stomped down to the temple door. It flowed as she left the house.

Connie sighed. "I guess I was pretty rude… But she-!"

"Let's leave it for now." Doug smiled, trying to cheer her up. "Instead, let's think of ways to spend this money!"

Connie thought about it, plopping down on her bed. She saw her violin out of the corner of her eye, and she grabbed it.

Doug watched her experiment with different strings, and she soon found a jaunty tune. He then started to sing to it, " _Bright, sunny day don't cost nothin'. Light, summer breeze, don't cost nothin'. What do I do, with all this money when the only thing I want is you?_ "

Connie smiled and shrugged.

" _Pallin' around don't cost nothin'. Singing a song don't cost nothin'. How do I spend, all this money? I'd rather just spend time with you._ "

Connie thought of it and suggested, " _You could get a new degree, in collage maybe, get a new job you love, perhaps_ "

" _But I already went, to the police academy_." Doug sang in response. " _And I want to see you, too much_ _for that. I could put you through school,_ "

" _But think of all the credits, that would be due._ " Connie responded with a matter of fact to her part. She had already looked up collage.. Sadly, it felt quite impossible for her to catch up at this age. Then, a smile lit up her face. " _What if we take a trip?_ "

" _Hey, you think?_ " Doug asked, glancing at her.

" _Yeah, I do! We could take a vacation. We could go somewhere new._ " Connie grinned, and started to play faster as her dad started to get into it.

" _I know a place that's always exciting! The show and the sights and the lights that are blinding!_ " Doug sang, grabbing a snowglobe of Empire City. " _Empire City! I'm talkin' Empire City!_ "

Connie beamed, grabbing her suitcase and already packing clothes and her violin, just incase.

" _The streets and the sounds and the buildings towering! Subways that run from Brooklyn to the Bowery! Empire City! Let's go to Empire City!_ " Doug continued, helping her gather her things.

Connie closed her bag and started to sing along, running down the steps. " _We don't need money! To have a good time!"_

 _"I know a place that's always exciting! The shows and the sights and the lights so blinding!_ " Doug swung out his keys.

Connie placed her bag on the sofa and ran up to the temple door, still singing.

" _The streets and the sounds and the buildings towering! Subways that run from Brooklyn to the Bowery!_ " Doug and Connie beamed at each other and finished the song with a show-stopping " _Empire City!_ "

Connie suddenly knocked on the door. "Peri, do you want to go to-"

"I heard you, and my answer is no." Peridot mumbled, opening the door.

"Please, Peri? I'm really sorry for getting mad, and I want to make up for it! I promise we'll have so much fun!"

"I don't like him." Peridot said plainly, pointing to Doug.

"I know, but maybe we can change that?" Connie asked with a shaky smile.

"... Fine." Peridot groaned.

"Yes!" Connie then saw both Doug and Peridot looking very uncomfortable.

"Connie, Peridot and I never got along, ever. Even when raising you." Doug sighed, itching his neck nervously. "I don't know…"

"It'll be fun!" Connie insisted. "It has to be! I mean, you, me, Peri, fun times ahead!" She then grabbed her suitcase and gasped. "Oh! And mother!"

Doug and Peridot both started to sweat looking at her gem.

They arrived in Empire City a while later, Connie taking pictures as Doug pulled her into the hotel.

She had never seen such a fancy place in her life! It was stunning, shining walls and floors, pillars, and was that a piano?

Connie gasped, taking it all in. Peridot held back a tiny smile. This girl had no idea how beautiful this universe could be, she had seen none of the splendor of Homeworld, but, hopefully they would all go there one day.

Doug slid his Id card over to a tiny man at the front desk with a nervous smile. The tiny man glanced at it and then back at him.

"Oh, I'm proving it's me." Doug explained with a laugh. "I have quite a lot to spend, and if you have any concerns, just call my bank, I'm sure they'll sort it out, tell you what happened and all."

The desk clerk looked bored until Doug put down a stack of money. Such joy was put into that man, he started to sing.

" _Hey, cut a rug!_ " The Desk Clerk called.

Peridot flinched and wanted to throw a suitcase at them when many hotel employees popped out around her. " _Hey, cut a rug!_ "

" _It's Mr. Doug!_ " The leader announced, prestenting Doug and Connie who stood nearby.

" _It's Mr. Doug!_ " The others repeated, also showing them off before picking up Connie and Doug and carrying them away. Peridot would not let them pick her up, she threw the bags at one to carry and then stoically followed the rest.

" _He's got the bucks!_ " The employees sang.

Doug laughed. " _I've got the bucks!_ "

" _It's all deluxe!_ "

" _It all deluxe!_ "

Connie and Doug were sat down at a table and Peridot sat down next to Connie.

" _When you're dining out with me, it's the finest steak and brie._ " Doug sang as the waiters showed off thier finest meals. Connie smiled as her father got up and tipped a waiter a hundred bucks, taking a bite of cheese.

" _Whoa! What a alarming tip range!_ " The waiter gasped.

" _My good sir, keep the change!_ " Doug cried as they picked him up again.

The employs shuffled all into a elevator, with Peridot far back as possible. Then, they flew up to the top floor, the penthouse.

Doug and Connie were star struck at this beautiful room while Peridot looked sceptical.

Doug and Connie had fine tailored suits made for them, Doug sporting a top hat and Connie placing a red rose in her hair after tying in up in a fancy bun.

The employs all made motions that were signs that they looked great. Peridot looked at Connie and smiled slightly, mouthing she looked lovely.

Connie and her father jumped in, the girl had changed into her swimsuit, of course. She slid down the slide, and Peridot watched from afar, hissing whenever a waiter offered her anything.

Doug and Connie swam up to Peridot and smiled, soon changing back into thier suits and had one made for Peri.

Peridot twirled in her suit and smirked. " _Ok, ok._ "

" _What you gotta say?_ " Doug and Connie choured

" _It's pretty fine._ "

" _You look divine!_ " Connie and Doug smiled happily.

" _And those singers who I thought sounded cloddy at least make a wild party!"_ Peridot smiled, actually having some fun here for once. " _This City is quite nice, unlike the barn filled with mice!_ " Peridot sang, winking at Connie who giggled before the gem grabbed her hand and twirled her around. " _And despite_ _all_ _this money, all I need to have fun is Connie!_ "

"You're having fun!" Doug cried with a smile.

Peridot shrugged, not looking at him when she said. "Oh, I guess."

Doug suddenly in joy grabbed Peridot and waltzed her around the room, much to the gem's surprise and almost fear. "So dance with me. just say-"

"LET GO OF ME!" Peridot screeched, pushing away. She panted for air and glanced up at the rest, who were all confused. Wasn't she having fun a moment ago? Peridot gave a sigh. "I-I still… dislike you." She whispered, making Doug frown and Connie tilt her head slightly. Peridot then stomped off.

"Boo! You ruined the song!" One guy yelled.

Doug sighed and gave him some money. "My apologies, gentlemen… Thanks for singing with us."

Connie sighed and Doug put a hand on her shoulder.

"It's always been like this, Connie…"

Later that night, Connie and Doug had fallen asleep, and Peridot covered up Connie a bit more as the girl softly snored.

Peridot glanced down to see Connie gem gleam in the moonlight at her through the girl's nightgown.

The gem's smile faded slightly, and she hugged herself quietly. She missed Yellow Diamond so much… And this trip had only made it worse… She would never trade Connie to bring her back but… was it wrong to still want to see her? To still.. love her?

Peridot started to sing softly. " _I lived for her, so I tried. My loyalty for my creator would never die… I lived for her, was that was a sin? To think that you ended it, before it could, begin…_ " She glared at Doug who was asleep, and walked out to the balcony, not knowing Connie awoke when she slipped away.

" _I lived for her, so I tried, to run you out and make sure you said goodbye._ " Peridot leaned on the glass edge, looking at the stars, while Connie sat up. _"I wanted her, but that was never to be, after the trust we had, I never thought she'd leave…"_ She let the hat roll off her head and onto her arm until she caught it again. " _It's over, isn't it? Isn't it? Isn't it over? It's over, isn't it? Isn't it? Isn't it over? You won, and she chose you, and she loved you, and she's gone. It's over, isn't it? Why can't I move on?_ "

Connie felt so bad for Peri… She hadn't realized this care for her leader had gone this deep…

" _Pain, and passion! Maybe even lies.._ " Peridot grabbed onto the edge of the balcony and swung herself out to the other side, holding on with one hand, and serenading with the other. " _All those times I saw her_ _with him, inside, I cried._ "

" _Maybe it was foolish, maybe it was bad,_ " Peridot leaped back to the platform, toddling around while singing. " _I knew it was wrong, so why did I feel so glad,_ " Peridot sighed. " _when she looked at me, my world stopped turning! But now I'm without her and my feelings are churning._ " She laid down and watched the clouds seem to tell her story, Yellow Diamond was with her, until him. " _When she seemed to laugh it made my heart go wild!_ " Peridot then thought of what Yellow has left behind. " _Now I've got to be_ _there for her child…_ "

Connie silently hopped off the bed, watching.

" _It's over, isn't it? Isn't it? Isn't it over?_ " Peridot hugged herself and spun in place. " _It's over, isn't it? Isn't it? Isn't it over?_ "

" _I'll admit, you won! And she choose you, and she loved you and she's goooonnne!_ " Peridot let the note wail out before taking a sharp breath after, a single tear falling down her cheek. " _It's over, isn't it? Why_ _can't I move on?_ " She glanced up at the glittering stars above, that seemed to be shaped like diamond. " _It's over, isn't it? Why can't I move…. on?_ " After a few moments of silence and thought, she turned back to the room and was surprised to see Connie awake. But, she wasn't the only one.

Doug had his back turned to her as he put on a robe. "I get it, okay? I'm some human that never deserved Yellow Diamond in the first place, I never deserved to know about gems at all. I get your point." He then stood and walked out, Peridot stuttering.

"Hey! … D- Don't sound so upset, okay?" Peridot called after him.

"I'm fine." Doug cut off sharply. "You didn't seem to care before."

"Dad!" Connie tried, but he had already closed the door.

"I hate guilt…" Peridot moaned. She then glanced up at Connie, saddened. "This is why I didn't want to come, Connie… I make him upset, it's a reflex to when I see him, I guess." The gem grew quiet. Then, she sighed. "If he made my diamond happy… I suppose I shouldn't refuse him."

Connie narrowed her eyes and frowned. "You finally got that. Now, come on." She grabbed Peri's hand and pulled her to the door. "I asked you here so you two can fix this."

Connie took Peri down to see Doug, who stared into nothingness, clearly lost in thought.

Connie gave a small cough and he turned. Peridot held one of her hands while she delicately held her violin case in the other. Peridot bowed her head when they met eyes and glanced away.

Connie then walked up to a employ playing the piano, and gave him a pile of bills. The man then happily got up and sang to himself as he practically skipped away.

Connie got up on the bench and started to play her violin in a soft sort of waltz. " _Why don't you talk to_ _each other?_ " Peridot and Doug walked up to watch her. " _Why don't you talk to each other? Just give it a_ _try._ "

Doug and Peridot glanced at each other then looked away, both clearly embarrassed.

" _Why don't you talk about what happened? I know you're trying to avoid it, but I don't know why. You might not believe it…._ " Connie sang, as she bowed her head with a sad smile. " _You might not believe, it,_ _but you got a lot in common, you really do…_ "

Peridot and Doug slid closer together, and in a way, Peridot was focused in a pale white light, while Doug in a rosy pink. They both looked at each other, surprised in this sudden change… They were actually seeing each other, nearly looking past each other's relationship with the gem they had loved.

Connie softly sighed, and sang on. " _You both love me, and I love both of you…_ "

Doug and Peridot both teared up, blushing. No, no, they would never let the other see them cry! Not ever! ...But… this was different. They both were so emotionally open now.

Connie smiled, and a single tear fell from her cheek. The tear landed on her bow in the perfect shape of a diamond.

Peridot and Doug lay, looking at a starry sky.

"I…I'm sorry." Doug blurted out softly.

Peridot glanced at him.

"I never would regret the love I had for her, but I've always…" Doug gave a sad smile. "I've always hated myself for not having the guts to properly apologize to you, Peridot."

Peridot was silent for a moment and then gave a nod. "Your apology is accepted, Doug. I'd like you to know…" She glanced at him. "I never meant for you to take my comments so hard… I knew they would hurt but I… I never meant for you to think you didn't deserve to be with us, clearly, you were good enough. I don't think I ever wanted to hurt you, I wanted to stop her… I wanted her to stop loving you. But… I couldn't."

Doug smiled. "You know Yellow,"

"No one can tell her what to do!" The two laughed together through tears.

" _I know you both need it,_ " Connie sang softly, as Peridot stood and offered her hand.

She had refused a dance before, but now?

" _I know that you both need it. Someone who knows what you're going through._ " Doug and Peridot waltzed, and glanced at each other with smiles. " _And you might not believe it. You might not believe it, but you got a lot in common. You really do._ " Doug dipped Peridot and then twirled her. " _You both love me, and I love both of you. You both love me, and I love both... of… you._ " Connie softly finished the song, and the lighting seemed to fade.

The hotel staff suddenly popped up from behind tables, they all were secretly watching. They cheered and Connie gave a laugh, doing a tiny nod in thanks before leaping to the others. Peridot squeaked in surprise and nearly fell until Doug caught her.

The two smiled.

Then, the desk check walked up to Doug and coughed. "Le bill!" He uncovered a platter and presented the bill.

Doug took in a sharp breath. He had knew the price would be high, but he had wanted a amazing night with his girl, but gained much more, and that hadn't cost anything at all. He glanced at Peridot. " _Tailor-made suits. Those cost somethin'. Room with a view._ " The bill unfolded, and the tail reached his shoes.

Peridot smirked and looked up at him. " _But dancing with you…_ "

" _Don't cost nothin'._ " Doug smiled.

"This trip was sorta a waste, we could've done all this," Peridot winched slightly. "feeling stuff at home."

Connie and Doug laughed. Looked like the usual Peri was coming back.

The trio stepped outside and loaded up the car, Peridot singing softly. " _Singing a song don't cost_ _nothing._ "

Connie tried to tell her that wasn't right. But Peridot sang over her, " _Not getting anything wrong,"_

Doug rolled his eyes. " _don't cost nothing._ "

"It is a catchy song, Doug, but you're only getting that out of me." Peridot sniffed, walking to the front seat of the car.

A few minutes later, Connie was cuddled up in the backseat in her suit and softly sang to herself. " _It's over, isn't it…? Isn't it?"_ She opened her eyes to see Peridot and Doug were talking in the front seat, without a scowl or sweat from either. She smiled. Was the years long feud truly ending? " _Isn't it… over?_ "


	87. No Train, No Gain

"Pearl!" Connie called, running up to the gem. She was smiling and plopped down next to her. "Want to come with us to train?"

"Train? For what?" Pearl asked. She suddenly gasped and stood. "Did those Jaspers come back for me?!"

"No! No!" Connie cried, holding out her hands to stop her friend from panicking. "I mean, just train. You know, we do it every Saturday…"

Pearl looked confused. "Wait, are you serious? When did you start doing this?"

"Um… since I first held my sword?" Connie whispered softly.

Pearl looked dumbfounded. "What…?"

"We, don't really talk about it much, we all know about it." The girl shrugged. "Where did you think we went every Saturday morning?"

"I thought…. huh." Pearl trailed off. How had she never known this?

Connie waited a few moments before smiling. "Want to come this time? Train?"

"Um…" Pearl blushed and Connie suddenly grabbed her arm.

"Come on! This'll be fun!"

* * *

Pearl was shaking on the bleachers of the sky arena, watching the other Temps train with each other. She glanced at the sword Peridot had given her, then glanced away.

"Okay, I'm ready!" Connie yelled.

Jasper formed her helmet and ran at Connie. The girl smirked when she got nearly to hitting her, and jumped up, landing on her head and then thrusting her hand in the gem's back.

"Oh! You got me!" Jasper cried in fake agony, falling over, making Connie fall to the ground. The girl laughed.

Peridot walked up with a frown. "Are you two training hard?"

"Yes!" Connie and Jasper said togther with goofy grins.

Lapis suddenly yelled, wrapping a whip of water around Peri.

Connie suddenly ran up to her with lighting speed and cut the water in half.

Lapis smirked. "Not too bad."

"It's gonna get better." Connie laughed with a glint in her eyes.

They all were so wrapped up in thier little game, they didn't see that Pearl had snuck off to the side.

The gem dropped the sword, safe behind a staircase where no one would look for her. A glow came from her gem as a hologram formed, and the gem bent down into a kneeling position. The figure didn't cast a shadow like it had that fateful night, but Pearl still could remember how hard her chest had pounded. Whenever she stepped out of line, she always put herself through this memory…

"Pearl!"

Pearl gave a jolt in shock and turned to see Peridot looking angry. The hologram exsploded into dust.

"What were you doing." Peridot growled.

Pearl's eyes widened. "I… um…"

"That wasn't Rose Quartz." Peridot replied. "That was too tall to be her… Who was that?"

"Y-You didn't see?" Pearl stuttered with a look of suprise.

"Why do you think I asked?" Peridot hissed. She seemed very, very upset, but she had known she had worked for Rose, why was she more upset about this?

"Just forget it." Pearl growled, standing up with her sword. She walked back to the arena

Peridot followed her with suspicion.

* * *

Pearl watched as Connie started to duel with a hollow Peridot, and a water clone beside that. The girl brandished her sword, letting the hollow thrust its sword at her and leaping onto the blade. She swiftly kicked the hologram in the head, causing it to vanish.

The water clone had the same skill set as Connie did, seeing as it looked exsactly like her. The girl stabbed her sword through the clone and it fell apart. The girl raised a eyebrow in suprise and then sensed another clone coming at her. She twirled around and a clang resonated from her sword, the powerful waves destroying it.

"Nice!" Lapis called.

The girl smiled, panting.

Pearl clapped for her and then gave a cry. "Connie, look out!"

Connie turned and saw another hollow coming at her. She raised her sword, but the thing knocked it out of her hands, her being too suprised to be completely focused.

"Stop! She doesn't have a weapon! She going to get-" Pearl was cut off when Connie destabilized it. Pearl felt embarrassed, how could she forget?

"She's fine, Pearl." Jasper chuckled. "Even if her sword gets knocked away, she can still use her powers."

"Right…" Pearl whispered, clenching her fist slightly.

"You want to try, Pearl?" Lapis asked, sitting nearby.

Pearl thought about it and glanced at the sword. "I...No."

"But why not?" Connie asked with surprise.

"I can't train today." Pearl insisted.

Connie frowned. "Um… then next week?"

"No." Pearl grunted. She suddenly stood and walked down from the bleachers. "I'll train in private!"

Peridot frowned. She had a feeling that Pearl wasn't going to train.

* * *

"You know what you were made for Pearl?" The hologram asked.

"Yes, Rose." Pearl whispered, bowing to it, resuming what she had set up before.

"Don't call me that."

Pearl glanced up to look at her. "But I thought you wanted-"

"Pearl, where are you?" Peridot called.

The hologram of her mistress popped away.

Peridot peeked behind the staircase and saw Pearl looking at the ground.

"Is this about how you were a servant? And all your powers originally aren't for fighting?" Peridot whispered, sliding down beside her.

Pearl glanced down at her with a tiny frown. "Aren't you still upset with me?"

"Secrets are hard to keep, it will come out sometime." Peridot shrugged with a tiny smile.

"Easy for you to say, you don't have any big secrets like I do. My mistress trusted me with everything." Pearl whispered. "You see, I always had to keep her secrets, betray gems I cared for, and clean her sword after it had tried to do the unthinkable… I trained alone, always. I was in constant fear that I would be found out, I never told a single gem I was teaching myself to fight. I guess… even now, after I've showed you all my skill… I'm still afraid to train with anyone else, old habits die hard."

Peridot glanced at her, and then back to ground.

"I just want to have one power from my gem, one made to fight! Is that so hard to ask?" Pearl groaned suddenly. "You all have one… And I don't."

Peridot shrugged. "I asked my gem for a power like that all the time when I was a servent. I didn't discover I had metal powers until I joined the rebellion, it takes time, Pearl."

Pearl looked saddened. "I suppose that's true." She sighed. "I just… want to help."

"You are helping! Just training with us, you're helping us get better…" Peridot then trailed off and thought of something. "But… you are just a Pearl, aren't you?"

Pearl's weak smile fell. "What?"

"A Pearl, you let Rose Quartz push you around, and use you, just like Pearls are supposed to." Peridot whispered.

Pearl felt anger boil up in her. "Not anymore! I'm not like th-"

"But you were, who knows what things you did for her, Rose, you weren't made for fighting."

"Stop it…" Pearl growled. "You don't know what I've done! You don't know anything! Why are you suddenly pointing out my flaws?!"

Peridot didn't, contiuing to baride her. "Rose didn't believe you could fight, heh, we didn't believe you could fight either! You're just a Pearl."

"I… I…" Pearl's gem glowed and Peridot stopped. The taller gem grew more upset, and turned to see a hologram of Rose Quartz. "I'M NOT JUST A PEARL, ROSE!" She cried, tears in her eyes as she suddenly slashed through the hologram of her past mistress with… not a sword, but a beautiful teal spear. She had done it! She had summoned her weapon! From her gem! Pearl gave a shocked noise, stuttering in surprise. "Did… Did I…?"

"Ha, ha! I knew that would work!" Peridot cried, punching the air in triumph. "Insulting you and making you think about your traumatic past was perfect for making you angry enough to summon a weapon and prove…"

Pearl smiled happily, wiping away tears. "I don't need a master… I'm my own gem."

"Crystal Temps! Come here!" Peridot yelled.

The rest of the Temps ran over and Connie gasped in suprsie.

"Pearl! You have a weapon! This is so great!" She squealed.

Lapis punched Pearl playfully on the arm. "Good job, Pearl."

"A Pearl has a weapon? I didn't even know that!" Jasper cried.

Pearl gave a growl in annoyance and pointed to spear to Jasper. "I do!"

"I'm just kidding, you are using it Pearlfectly."

The other Temps giggled while Pearl rolled her eyes, hiding her own smile. She glanced at the spear in her hands and it vanished in sparkles. The gem tightened her hand to a fist.

 **Did you notice the cover change? Good! I'm planning on doing a cover change each chapter now, to exspress the story in it. I'm also coming up with character clothes designs on the Connie Universe and The Temps amino, join to see new images, talk about theories, roleplay, and Steven Universe in general, because**

 **SPOILERS!**

 **Garnet wedding was beautiful and no one can tell me otherwise! Also, that Yellow clod! She poofed Lapis and Peri, darn it!**


	88. The New Sadie

Connie sat reading a new book in the fantasy section of the book store, quietly scanning the pages with great focus.

"Ugh!" Sadie groaned, heaving a box of books to shelve. "This job is so annoying! Why do I even work two?"

Connie smiled slightly, hiding it behind the book. She glanced around and saw Lars wasn't around, then spoke. "Maybe because you want to see Lars more?"

Sadie gave a cry in surprise and snapped her head to Connie. "Jeez Connie! How long have you been there?"

"An hour." Connie hummed, looking back to her book. "Any time Steven has off from the car wash, I want to hang out with him, maybe you're the same with Lars?"

"That's…" Sadie turned away from the girl. She then gave a growl. "That's stupid! I do it for the money!"

Connie rolled her eyes as if to say, 'Okay, sure, I believe you.'

Lars walked over at that point, not hearing what they had previously said. "Hey Sadie."

Sadie gave a grumble in his direction as a greeting while Connie actually said hello.

"Whoa!" Lars cried, jumping at the sight of Connie. "How long have you been there?!"

"An hour and five minutes I think." Connie answered immediately, going back to the book.

"I can't wait to not deal with this tomorrow." Sadie muttered, nodding in Connie's direction.

"Oh yeah! They're finally taking down a few sections, since Connie's too young to read them." Lars chuckled.

Connie glanced up. "Huh? What about the other people that come here?"

Lars gave a laugh. "No one comes here but you, Connie."

The girl realized that was indeed a fact. It made sense. She seemed to be the only one who loved to read in this town besides Peridot, and Peri didn't like to go into town much.

"So, any plans?" Lars asked Sadie.

Sadie shrugged in response. "Nope."

Lars thought about it and blushed slightly. "Er… maybe, if you want, I know it's been awhile but you could come over to my place and hang out. We could play some video games like we used to."

"Eh, I'll pass." Sadie said abruptly. "I'll see what Buck's doing."

"Oh… Yeah, okay, fine, another guy-friend… I'm totally cool with that." Lars muttered out in a whisper, shoving his hands in his pockets and glancing down at the ground.

"Well, I don't need your permission." Sadie replied snappily.

They then noticed Connie had abandoned the book and was watching them intently.

"Connie…? You're staring a bit." Lars whispered to her.

"Oh!" Connie blushed and laughed. "Sorry!"

* * *

"Sadie, girl to girl, I think you should tell Lars how you feel." Connie said as Sadie locked up later that night.

Sadie rolled her eyes. "And what's that?"

"That you love him!" Connie beamed. "That hang out would be a great opportunity!"

"I don't love him, we're not even dating or anything!" Sadie groaned. "Feelings are complicated for a girl, Connie."

Connie frowned. "But.. you do love him! You think you know about complicated feelings about life?! Listen! I know all about..." Sadie was now out of earshot. "them…"

* * *

That night, Connie was asleep, and dreaming about Sadie.

She opened her eyes in a dream and saw Sadie in front of her.

"Sadie, why do you have to be so inconsiderate? I wish I could show you how life could be better!"

They suddenly collided and Connie awoke with a magazine over her face. She gave a moan, waking up. She was surprised to see it and took the thing off her face. "What? I'd never…." She trailed off when she didn't recognize her voice. "Wait… Where am I?" She muttered, getting out of the bed. She then noticed the mirror and gasped in shock, seeing Sadie instead of herself. She looked around and saw movies scattered the floor, stuffed animals were in the corner. "Oh no! I must've jumped into Sadie's mind last night!" She shoved on clothes and gave a sigh. "I shouldn't mess with Sadie's life, who knows what consequences there could be!... But… I could make it better for her… I don't know what I should-"

"Sadie!" A loud female voice called. The not-Sadie glanced up. That that probably was the mother of the person she had unwillingly possessed.

* * *

Connie in Sadie's body walked up the basement steps. "Hello mother."

"Mother? Where'd you pick that one up?" Barb laughed, giving her a home cooked breakfast, pancakes and eggs. The eggs were the eyes of a smiley face while bacon was the smile.

Connie flushed in surprise. Teens usually didn't use such formality, but since her real mom was gone, and used to be a ruler… it sounded better to call her mother. "I mean, Mom."

"It's fine. So, how you feeling this morning?"

"Um… fine." Connie fibbed in Sadie. She then realized only two places were set, a third sat empty.

"Wait, where's Sa-my dad?" The teen asked.

Barb looked upset for a split second, then gave a laugh. "I don't know where he is! But I'm sure he thinks about you, pumpkin. You usually don't bring him up much anymore…"

"Oh! Er… never mind that..." Connie said hurriedly. She hadn't seen Sadie's father, true, but assumed he was at least around. She felt bad now for just assuming that, after all, she knew better then anyone that everyone had a different family situation.

"Are you wearing a dress?" Barb suddenly asked.

Sadie, or rather Connie glanced down. "Yes? Um, do I look alright?"

"You look nice." Barb smiled.

* * *

"I can't believe this…" Connie whispered to herself. "I knew I could project myself into the beings I made, but humans too? … My powers are so surprising. I should write this down somewhere..." She whispered. She glanced up and saw Buck Dewey and Sour Cream. She ran up to them.

"Hey guys!" She cried, waving. The two teens glanced at each other, then back to her, wondering if they should talk to her. Maybe?

Sour Cream looked at her up and down. "Uh, you're wearing a dress?"

"Yeah! She normally wouldn't, but I wanted to show how pretty Sa-I look in a dress! Um, Connie gave me the idea." Connie said. It was… sorta true?

"Cool. I like that kid." Buck said calmly.

Sour Cream nodded in approval.

A sweet smile lit Sadie's face. "I'm glad to hear that."

Jenny suddenly walked out Fish Stew Pizza with a moan. "Dad made me work this morning. Now I stink like pizza and fish."

"You don't stink." Connie said immediately, complementing her friend.

Jenny gave a beam. "Thanks, girl!"

Sadie smiled back. "Anytime! You're also super cool, and kind, and I look up to you!" All of those were Connie's real thoughts.

"Sadie, you are making my day! This is so unlike you!" Jenny chuckled.

Buck suddenly furrowed his brow. "I see what's going on here,"

Sadie looked surprised, while inside her, Connie was praying he didn't know.

"Maybe Sadie is actually…" Buck put a hand on her shoulder. "A good person who likes making people feel good."

"Heh, heh, yeah…" Connie chuckled nervously. "You got me…"

"That's the kind of vibe I want on our dance crew." Buck smiled.

"A dance crew? Oh, I can't dance, but maybe Sadie would want to!" Connie blurted out. She realized her mistake and covered her mouth but the others ignored it.

"Buck is pleased." Buck said with a smile.

Connie remembered Lars. "I'm really sorry guys, but I need to do something else."

* * *

She knocked on Lars' door with a smile.

Lars opened the door, in his robe and yawned. "Yeah, who…." His bored expression faded to slight panic when he had to look down to see her.

"Hi." Connie waved with Sadie's body. "Do you still want to hang out?"

"Huh…" He grunted, crossing his arms. "You just keep coming back."

Sadie looked surprised, he looked slightly angry. "Are you… upset?"

Lars blushed and glared away. "What? No! It didn't even matter anyway, just was a suggestion and…" He realized his ability to not share his emotions was making Sadie a bit uncomfortable. "I mean, come on in… Um, want to play some video games, you don't have to-"

"That sounds great."

"Heh…" Lars smiled, watching her come in then gave burst out laughing. "You're wearing a dress?!"

* * *

They sat in Lars' room in the attic, which was really messy, but that was fine. The bed was unmade, posters were on the walls, it seemed a lot like Lars. For the first time in a long time, Lars plugged in a second controller.

"You're choice, Sadie." Lars called as he fiddled with a game console.

Connie sifted through the games. "Army of War, Destruction of Hope, Rebellion Against The Odds…" The girl glanced back at Lars. "All of these sorta make me feel uncomfortable."

Lars raised a eyebrow. "But you love those-"

Connie suddenly gave a gasp of wonder, diamonds in her eyes. "You have Legend of Zelda?! The original?!"

"Um… yeah… But I only used to play it as a kid, way too simple for me-"

"Simple?! Swords, puzzles, amazing music! None of that is simple!" Connie squealed, fangirling. "Can I play it, Lars? Please? Please?! I know it's one player, but just a few minutes would be wonderful for me, I've never played it!"

"Okay, only a few minutes! And we take shifts!" Lars muttered. Sadie never cared for the single player ones, she liked playing with him, or, she used to…

* * *

"You can do it… You can do it!" Sadie cried through clenched teeth about a hour later. They hadn't kept true to that agreement.

Lars defeated the boss of the temple and the two gave yells in victory, high fiving and laughing.

Lars flopped on the bed next to her and smirked. "Told ya it was simple."

Connie rolled her eyes with Sadie's. "Yeah, sure."

Lars noticed the untouched bag of oyster crackers and frowned. "You haven't even opened the crackers. They're your favorite."

"They are?" Connie then blushed and quickly cried out, "They totally are, yes! I, um…" She opened the box and poured some crackers out before half-hazardly tossing them into her mouth. She frowned at the salt level, but then quickly smiled when she noticed Lars watching.

Lars smiled and gazed at who he thought was Sadie, then glanced away. He cleared his throat, gaining her attention, and he gave a worried sigh. "Um… Sadie, you've been acting really strange lately."

"Oh?" Connie chuckled nervously. Lars was Sadie's best friend and partner, at least, Connie could only write about them being partners, so of course had have suspicions.

"Yesterday, when Connie was around, you said you'd go hang out with other people, and made sure Connie knew that, but now, you're here… I'm not stupid, Sadie. Not everything goes over my head."

"I… I didn't say you were stupid…" Connie mumbled softly, feeling bad. Whatever she did, she had to refrain herself from blurting out the word 'love'. She would not mess with Sadie's love life! As much as she desperately wanted to, she wouldn't.

"Just, tell me how you truly feel about me, okay? Please."

Connie glanced up in surprise, and with her emotions tied to Sadie's body, it made the blonde blush. "Er, well… I can't…. um… I can't tell you that."

"You can't tell me?" Lars growled, snapping his head to her and recoiling away. "Why can't you tell me?! You don't want to hurt my feelings? You don't want things to get weird between us? Do-Do you even know how you feel about me?!"

"At the moment…. I can't say I do!" Connie yelled back as Sadie. She only thought she knew, and if that was true, she wanted the real Sadie to tell him.

Lars narrowed his eyes and glanced away in anger. "You know where the door is."

"Lars, you don't understand-!" Connie tried, but Lars put a hand out.

"I do! You're only friends with me when it's convenient for you!" Lars cried, crossing his arms.

Connie hestatied, then sighed, walking to the door. Her finger tips grazed the doorknob, she then gritted her teeth, and turned to Lars. "Lars, I can't give you the answer, because... I'm not Sadie! It's Connie! ...I woke up with my mind in Sadie's body… and I'm sorry."

Lars looked back at her with near disbelief and then knew she was telling the truth at the last word. "Huh. That explains a lot, Sadie never was into single player, and she loves oyster crackers."

"Wait, if my mind's in Sadie's body, Sadie's mind would be in mine! And that's at home!" Connie gasped suddenly.

"You just now thought of that?!"

"I've been under a lot of stress!"

* * *

Connie and Lars rushed through town, racing to get to the beach house. The cool kids were walked with their new, shining silver trophy, when they saw the two run past.

"Hey, look! It's Sadie and Doughnut Boy!" Jenny said with surprise. They followed them, eager to show the trophy.

Meanwhile, Barb was out delivering mail just as Connie and Lars ran by. She turned and saw her daughter and frowned. "Sadie? Where you going?" She then noticed Lars and quieted. "... Wait, who's that boy with my Sadie? He better not be getting her into any trouble!" She ran after who she assumed to be her daughter, and Lars.

The two arrived at the Beach House, unknowing of their recent fans. Connie struggled to open the door. "Urgh! I never leave home without my key in my pocket, but I don't have it on this body!" Connie moaned, trying to push it open.

Lars attempted to ram into it, but it was no use.

"I want my real body back!" Connie cried, slamming all of Sadie's strength into the door. She broke it open.

"Why are they breaking into Connie's house?" Jenny asked the other teens, watching from afar.

"Sadie?! What are you doing?!" Barbara cried, running after the two.

Connie and Lars ran up to Connie's true body, which was still peacefully asleep.

"There! Now how do we get you to wake up?" Lars asked hurriedly as the witnesses came in.

Connie desperately tried to shake herself awake while the others watched with worry.

"This looks weird, but don't jump to conclusions." Buck softly said, then they all gasped in horror as who they presumed was Sadie started slapping who they presumed was Connie.

"Wake up!" Connie yelled, and finally giving a slap, and there was a huge tingling sensation before she closed her eyes. She felt like she was nearly sick as her spirit went from Sadie's body to her own.

Connie gave a cry, blinking awake, happy to see her white nightgown with pink roses, and Sadie above her, who was drooling slightly as her real mind returned to her body, before collapsing into Lars.

"Sadie?!" Sadie's mother yelled as she and the Cool Kids ran up, Connie sitting up in her bed hurriedly, clenching the blanket as Sadie shakily stood.

Sadie finally awoke to see Lars above her. "L-Lars?" She then glanced over and gave a cry in shock, seeing everyone else there. "How did I get here?! What are you all doing here?!"

"Sadie, don't be mad…" Lars muttered.

Sadie snapped her neck to him. "About what?!"

"You see, Connie didn't mean to-"

"YOU!" Sadie yelled, turning to a frightened Connie still in bed who gasped. "WHAT DID YOU DO?!"

The Cool Kids protectively went in front of Connie, who was trembling, but made a brave face, thinking of what her mother would do, be confident, sound like it was not really too important, that she was far too supriour to handle explaining this, but would anyway.

"I spent the whole day in your body." She explained firmly, looking straight into Sadie's eyes. The eyes looked infuriated after she told what had happened, making the girl glance away in nervousness.

"How did you- DO THAT?!" Sadie yelled in anger.

"Where's your chill?" Jenny asked with confusion, as if this was normal. But, if this girl was her own mom and lived with three very odd women who almost got her killed on accident every few occasions, it probably was.

Buck was thinking nearly the same thing. "Buck is no longer pleased." He said, narrowing his eyes.

Connie brushed her fingers in her hair, not noticing it had started to friz because her electric powers were going in her fear. She told herself to calm down in her mind, taking a deep breath.

Barbra grabbed her shoulder and sighed. "I'm sorry, she usually is the sweetest girl!"

Connie frowned. What was she talking about? Sweet? When was Sadie sweet? Then again, maybe to her mother, she would be.

"I was acting 'sweet' all day, and no one thought to question that?" Sadie cried. "Everyone was fine with that?!"

"Sadie, don't embarrass yourself!" Barb scolded her daughter, who gave a huff in anger.

The teen took a deep breath in, closing her eyes, thinking it all through. She slowly tried to walk out of the room, but she failed at the side of the bed, there giving a war cry and trying to clobber Connie.

Barb give a cry and held her back.

* * *

The next morning, Connie in her own body glanced through the bookstore window, seeing Sadie sitting in one of the chairs, with her head down on a reading table.

Connie slowly walked in, and then up to her. "Um, Sadie? … Can we talk about yesterday?"

Sadie gave a muffled growl in response. Connie walked up to her and gingerly placed a emvolope on the table. "I wrote you a letter, it exsplains the power that made us switch bodies, at least, as much as I know about it, which isn't too much, and also explains all my other known powers, and all the safety precautions you should take to pro-"

Sadie grabbed the letter, head still down, and tore it in half, dropping it to the floor.

Connie frowned and glanced down at the once long, and elegant message full of her guilt and sorrow about the event, and all she had done. She had spent hours on that… She glanced back up at Sadie. "Okay, well, just to let you know, Lars knew something was up." The girl turned around and started to walk out when she heard a tiny voice.

"What did you say to him when you talked?" Sadie asked, putting her head up at the mention of Lars. "Did you… Did you say that I-"

"No. I didn't." Connie muttered.

"Thank goodness!" Sadie sighed in relief, and put her head back on the table.

Connie bit her lip and walked back up. "But… he asked what you thought of him… and I said I didn't know, that I couldn't tell him, because only you can, Sadie. I'm not interfering with that."

"What did he say back to you?"

"He thinks that you're embarrassed by him, and that you don't know how you feel about him… I've never seen a guy so upset before, besides Steven I mean."

Sadie looked sad, and felt even worse than that. "Makes sense, I treat him horrible, don't I?"

"Hm… If you do, why does he have a full box of oyster crackers in case you come over?" Connie smiled with a tiny blush.

Sadie glanced up with surprise. "No way, those are my favorite!" She cried. "... He really had those ready?"

"Yep. I think it's romantic!" Connie giggled, not stopping herself. Did Sadie really not know how much she meant to Lars? And Lars, the same about Sadie?

Suddenly, the door opened with a little jingle as the glass door hit the bell. Lars walked in, seeing Sadie, he gave a little wave. "Er, hey.."

"Lars!" Sadie ran out from behind the counter, and quickly gave him a hug, both blushed, and then she quickly let go. "Don't get too attached!" Sadie mumbled to the boy, who gave a small smile. The short girl looked up with a smirk.

"Weird day yesterday, huh?" Lars joked.

Sadie gave a scoff, rolling her eyes. "Everyday in Beach City is weird, that's why I hate it here."

"It's good to see the real you, Sadie." Lars smiled happily.

Sadie looked surprised, but incredibly grateful. He seemed to be the only one, but that was fine, that was just fine. "You think? Hey, why don't you bring some video games over later and I can show you how it's done." Sadie smirked, cracking her knuckles.

Lars gave a chuckle. "Yeah, okay."

* * *

Sadie and Lars played later that night, and Sadie gave a tiny yawn before stretching out and wrapping her arm around Lars.

The boy smiled and let her lean her head on him as they played on into the night….


	89. Beach City Drift

"So, this is the gas pedal, and this is the brake, correct?" Connie asked, pointing to the pedals of the new car her dad had bought. She wouldn't be driving for a few more years, if she even had time to, but wanted to learn early.

Her father nodded, smiling with approval at his girl. "Right, Connie! I'm so proud, you're catching on fast!"

"Thank you!" Connie laughed. She glanced down and put her hand on the clutch. "I already know quite a bit from watching you drive, Dad."

"Is that so? You're pretty observant." Doug smiled.

Connie glanced up when she heard her name and gave a wave to Steven, who was running out to the police station to see her.

"Steven!" Connie called, getting out of the car. "My father bought a new car! It's a… uh…" She glanced up at her father for help on the name as Steven got to her.

"A Dondi Supremo, Connie." Doug said with much pride. "It was from when I was a teenager, not much older then you two. It was my dream car…"

"Wow." Connie marveled.

"It is so, so cool! Can I try?!" Steven begged his friend's father.

Doug seemed to think about this for a minute. Should he really allow this boy, Steven Demayo, into his dream car? "... Um, well…"

Suddenly, they heard the reving a loud engine and even louder rock music, and turned in time to see a yellow sports car wheel into the station. The window slid down, revealing a face that the very sight made Connie's hands light up with static electricity. Steven narrowed his eyes in fury as well. The children at the same time whispered with cold hatred. "Kevin!"

They watched in anger, while Doug walked up.

"Um, excuse me," The man said, trying to get the teen's attention away from talking on his phone.

Kevin finally glanced at him. "What do you want, grandpa? I got a big race today, and I need somewhere to practice."

"You shouldn't treat people like that!" Connie cried, running up to defend her father. Steven ran up after her. Normally, Connie wouldn't pick a fight with him, but she was more prone to anger when her hands were burning with yellow power, which she hid behind her back. She kept her cool in her voice though. "Unless you'd like to have a noise complaint from the residents around here, I suggest you find somewhere else to practice."

Kevin turned off his phone, and narrowed his eyes. Now this one had his full attention. "Do I know you? I'd think I'd remember a know-it-all brat like you."

"You should remember her! You should remember both of us!" Steven growled, walking up to stand by Connie. "After all, we were the ones who you-"

"Ugh, people as amazing as me have no time for this." Kevin scoffed, rolling his eyes. "This place is too lame to practice anyway." He suddenly sped off, just as quickly as he had came.

"You are speeding!" Doug yelled after him in anger. He then gave a sigh. "I don't really have the full authority to stop him though, I'm just a security officer."

"I hate Kevin!" Steven suddenly yelled, making Connie jump. She had almost forgotten he was there, so clouded by her anger.

"Do you know that young man?" Doug asked softly.

Connie gave a small nod. "The first time we fused into Stevonnie, we met him at a dance where all the other teens were, and then Kevin,"

"Was a creep!" Steven blurted out suddenly. Connie nodded in agreement.

"By a creep, what do you mean?" Doug whispered, thinking about his little girl and her friend with that rude teenager. "What did he do to you two?"

"He kept asking us to dance, but we didn't want to!" Connie muttered in frustration.

Doug gave a sigh in slight relief that that was all, and bent down to give his daughter a hug, which she gladly accepted. Steven looked awkward by himself, so Connie pulled him into their hug.

"I'm so sorry that happened, you two. If he did any things that made you feel uncomfortable, you should've called Greg or I, or even the Temps, we would've picked you up." Doug assured them, sliding out of the hug.

"We have to handle this ourselves, Dad." Connie replied with a small frown. "We're old enough to where we can handle these things on our own."

"I know, but I… What I'm trying to say is, don't even give him, or anyone like him the time of day, kids. Don't give him the satisfaction of even thinking about him."

"Yeah… I guess you're right!" Steven smiled weakly.

* * *

A few hours later, and the children laid out on the hood of the Dondai, Steven having his eyes narrowed.

Steven soon looked away from his anger though and glanced at Connie. "Okay, I think that's all the brooding about Kevin I'm gonna have today! Your dad was right, we shouldn't even think about him!"

Connie nodded. "Yep. I suppose…" She went quiet, looking the exact same as before.

Steven glanced at her hands and frowned. "You know I can see your hands, right? You're still upset."

Connie nodded again. "He's awful! I wish I could stay calm… I'm just thinking really mad right now."

"I wish I could do that." Steven mumbled, sitting up. "I can't hide my hatred of him that well…"

Connie sat up as well with a slight frown. "I want to make him feel the way we do right now, Steven. I want him to be mad with us, you know? I want him to suffer like we are…" Her hand clenched into a fist.

Steven glanced down at it then back at her. "Whoa, Connie, calm down!" He cried.

Connie realized she was starting to singe the car hood and quickly took her hand off it, and it was fine. "Yikes, where did that come from?"

"A deep and buried place that should only show when jerks like him are bothering you." Steven answered. He gave a sigh. "I wish you or I could drive, Connie. That way, we could beat Kevin at that race!"

"But we're just kids! Driving at our age is illegal." Connie said matter of factly.

Steven thought about it for a moment and then smiled. "Well… we weren't kids when we met Kevin."

Connie smirked. "I smell what you're stepping in."

"Ew." Steven whispered softly with a tiny giggle.

* * *

A bit later that night, at the bottom of a hill in a dim lit parking lot, most of the teens of Beach City stood, watching a race that included Jenny and Kevin.

As per usual, Kevin came in first, with Jenny seconds behind in her pizza delivery car. She gave a moan in annoyance. "Ugh! My practice didn't pay off at all! That was so bad!"

Kevin stepped out of his ride with a smirk, eyeing Jenny with a gloating manner as he leaned against it. "I know, baby. I'm the worst." He laughed.

Jenny gave a scoff. How could anyone accept this guy's flirting?

Kevin looked at the bystanders with a cruel smirk. "Anyone else think they can beat me and my Himitsu X-12 on the downhill course, step right up."

The crowd backed away, including Ronaldo, with his scooter.

"Come on," Kevin mock-whined still with smugness. "how am I going to get a cool-down lap if no one wants to go?"

They all suddenly heard a engine roar, and a new challenger drove into the lot. They got out with a stern attitude about them, wearing Connie's black 'Mr. Universe' tee with a red vest that was really Steven's usual tee cut in half. They called to Kevin, "I'll race you!"

Kevin gave a startled reply, seeing them again.

Ronaldo excitedly scootered over to Stevonnie and their new ride. "Is that a 96' Supremo?" He gasped in excitement and wonder.

Stevonnie looked a bit nervous and smiled. "Uh... I think it's a Dondai?" She whispered, remembering what Dad/Mr. Universe had said about it.

"A Supremo is a Dondai!" Ronaldo insisted with a cry.

Stevonnie was surprised by this, a eyebrow arched. "Wow. Really?"

"Are you saying you don't know the true power of the Supremo?" Ronaldo whispered dangerously, a glint in his glasses as they seemed to cloud over.

Stevonnie was a bit weirded out by that, as anyone would be.

"Ha! That's why I knew those brats at the car wash -- they're you!" Kevin laughed with wide eyes. Stevonnie turned, then narrowed their eyes. They were Connie and Steven, but they were also Stevonnie, their own person, an experience! And they liked being referred to as theirself rather than their components, as any fusion would. "Your whole "two kids in a beautiful trench coat" routine won't fool me this time, so don't even try it!" Kevin called.

"You don't know what you're talking about!" Stevonnie replied sternly, slapping their hand on the hood of the car, making Ronaldo back away. "I'll show you what I'm made of when I beat you at this race!"

"Ha, I see what's going on here." Kevin laughed coyly.

Stevonnie arched a eyebrow in disdain and crossed their arms. "Do you?" They whispered dangerously.

"You've had a taste of Kevin," The teen said, leaning just as Stevonnie was. He then narrowed his eyes with a smirk. "and now you're obsessed."

Stevonnie paused, and then clenched their teeth in anger, how dare he! "What?" They grunted.

"I get it. I have that effect on people." He said with a small shrug, clearly baiting them. "It's cute." He smirked. "But aren't I a little old for you?"

Stevonnie hated him so much, she could barely contain herself! "Gah! Do you want to race or not?" She yelled with fury, cheeks puffed.

"The start is at the top of the mountain." Kevin replied with boredom, pointing to the mountain behind him. "We go when the clock strikes the hour." He displayed his watch just long enough for Stevonnie to see it before swiping his arm away. "First one to the bottom wins," He then smirked and winked at them. "but you don't have to worry about that last part."

Stevonnie made a small noise, their face twisting up in anger. They was shaking with rage. They would leave him in the dust!

Kevin then got into his car and made a big show of turning around to the mountain and speeding off to the top. The tires screeched and the cloud of dust sent everyone coughing, except Stevonnie.

Stevonnie had no time to cough, they were infuriated. "That guy's going down..." They growled, hands sparking.

* * *

Kevin waited for them at the top of the mountain, clearly bored. He glanced at his watch, seeing the minute hand was nearly at the hour. Where were those brats? Or that brat? What should he call them, he wondered to himself. He then glanced up, hearing a growling.

That, of course, was Stevonnie. They and their Dondai Supremo were right beside Kevin and his circus of bells and whistles he called a car. The boy gave a genuine smile, that wasn't a smirk, this took Stevonnie off a bit. "You know, this mountain pass has some really beautiful views…" Kevin smiled, glancing out the window, he then smirked at Stevonnie. "Shame you'll only be seeing my tail lights the whole time."

Stevonnie growled. They wouldn't be enjoying the sights, that was true, but that was because they had to win! "You wish!" They spat back.

Stevonnie glanced at the electrical clock on the car, two minutes to go… They turned on their headlights.

8:57…

8:58…

8:59….

NOW!

Kevin smirked, saying his usual slogan. "It's Kevin time." He then sped off into the night.

Stevonnie had been thrown off by it, and gave a cry as she changed gears and tailed after him. Only a small Connie part in them had seen the winding road sign, and knew to be careful, but still, they needed to beat that jerk with speed, not caution!

* * *

A few minutes later, Kevin was speeding on the on the mountin road, which Connie would've told him to slow down with gravel, but Stevonnie wasn't exsaxtly paying attention to it as they caught up with Kevin.

Kevin, as usual, was very confident, until he saw Stevonnie hot on his tail.

Stevonnie was shaking with anger now, their hands let of sparks

"H-Hey!" Stevonnie cried at themselves.

"What?!" Stevonnie grunted back. "What's wrong?!"

"Are you okay? You're freaking out again!"

"I think mad! I don't act like it!" Stevonnie yelled to themself, halting the conversation. They narrowed their eyes. "I won't let him win!" They changed gears and speed up, passing Kevin. They tauntingly laughed at Kevin, and kept laughing. This was great!

Or, it was, until they a sharp ahead, they were heading straight to it!

Ronaldo watched from below, his binoculars to his eyes. He seemed to be the only one excited about Stevonnie's near hopeless situation. "Oh my gosh! This is it!"

"Are they going to crash?" Jenny immediately said, clearly worried.

Ronaldo glared at her, spatting out a "No! We're about to witness the true power of the Supremo!"

The crowd gave a collected sound of understanding, watching Stevonnie still going at the sharp.

* * *

The teen was panicking now, and thought about what a adult they knew would do. They wracked their memory, and then changed gear, slammed on the parking break, and put their foot in the regular break. They veered to the left, praying to the stars above this would work as they screwed their eyes shut tight.

When they opened them, they glanced out and saw they were drifting! The power of the Supremo really, truly existed! Stevonnie smirked, until they saw Kevin was right behind them.

"So you do know how to use that thing." Kevin smiled at them tauntingly, making both parts of them boil in anger. He gave a laugh, then sped in front of them.

Kevin didn't have to do all the hard work Stevonnie did, of course, all he had to do was push a button behind his wheel, and he drifted. Unluckily for him, Stevonnie was catching on.

They fought for the lead, changing gears, turning, drifting, and anything they could do to get ahead of the other. Whatever happened, they had to win, and make the other pay! At least, two of the people involved wanted that, the third wasn't so sure.

Eventually, the cars got rammed right next to each other.

"I know you want to get close, but this is a little bit clingy." Kevin smirked at them, taunting them still.

Stevonnie rolled her eyes with a growl.

"Feel like giving up yet?" The other teen asked with a cruel smile, sensing their weakness.

"Don't you get it? You'll never be given real admiration until you step up, and deserve it! You have to treat others with respect or they'll still hate you!" Stevonnie cried at him in anger. "Why are you like this?!" They yelled.

Kevin suddenly looked uncomfortable. "To be honest, I just want people to care because… no one does at home. Only my little sister cares, she thinks I'm incredible, but, she's wrong, isn't she? She's sick… She's been sick all our lives. Sometimes, if the world hates on her, on us, why should I give any care back?" He growled softly, a frown on his face. "It won't help her."

Stevonnie was shocked. This was why… Part of them understood that. Life did throw curveballs, and they hurt sometimes, but at least they tried to make the best of it, at least they had people who cared, and deep down, everyone, even Kevin, had someone. "Kevin, I had no idea…"

Kevin covered his mouth, eyes clenched tight. He was sniffling, was he… about to cry? The teen contuied to sniff, and then, Stevonnie heard unmistakable chuckles, and then a maniacal laugh escaped Kevin. "Dude, I don't even have a sister!" He howled with laughter. "I'm like this because I think it's funny!"

Stevonnie nearly gave a tiny yell in anger, only a small sound escaped their mouth as their eyes widened in fury and their face tightened.

"Chowsers!" Kevin smirked, and sped off ahead of them.

"KEVIN!" Stevonnie yelled in anger. Their hands gripped the steering wheel tighter, not seeing the electric clock glitch out because of their power. It then went out completely. They suddenly felt like they were being torn apart, and glanced behind them to see the road crumbling in thier panic. "What's happening to us?!" They cried, then snapped their head back to the road.

"We have to make him pay! He made me uncomfortable, he has to suffer for that! He has to!" Suddenly, a hallucination their enemy's face appeared before them, laughing with red glowing eyes. Stevonnie screamed in fear and veered to the left, turning the car around, and then, Stevonnie was gone.

Steven and Connie were there now instead, sitting next to each other, seatbelt still on. Connie quickly shoved her foot on the break, and put it in park. Then, they looked at each other.

"A-Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Connie whispered, shattering the silence and looking at her friend with concern.

Steven shook his head. "No…Are you hurt?"

"I'm okay." Connie smiled softly

"Good…" Steven said, happy she was alright. He suddenly unbuckled the seatbelt and walked out to the road.

"What's wrong?" Connie asked.

"This!" Steven cried suddenly. "The way we're going about this is wrong!"

"What are you talking about?" Connie frowned suddenly, narrowing her eyes. "We're making Kevin pay! We're making him suffer for what he did to us!"

"Connie, what is with you right now?! Do you even hear yourself? You sound like you want to hurt him!" Steven yelled back. "I… I don't want any part in making someone get hurt." He faded out.

Connie realized, that she had been so outraged, that she had wanted to hurt Kevin, but why? She never wanted to hurt anyone! Well… she didn't, but she had inherited a bit of anger, she supposed. "Steven, I don't want to hurt anyone, I want to win this! I want to beat him at this race!"

"For who?" Steven asked glumly back. "Connie… he's the reason we fused." The boy looked saddened.

Connie gasped in realization. That… wasn't what Stevonnie was supposed to be! They were made of friendship, and care, not of hatred! They weren't made so they could fight someone, not originally. They were made so the friends could be together. They were near as unstable as Sugilite when they veered off the road. "Steven…. We really were obsessed with him…"

"I know." Steven muttered. "I hate him still, but he isn't the reason I want to fuse anymore. I wanted to fuse to be with you! To be Stevonnie, us! I want to win this, but not for him."

"Right." Connie smiled, and reached out her hand and Steven took it, smiling back at her. "For us!"

* * *

Down the hill, Jenny was getting worried about Stevonnie. For some reason, they reminded her of that Connie girl she had so much fun with that night before the Temps had nearly killed her trying to stop a alien of some sort. "That it, I'm checking to see if they're okay."

"Wait!" Ronaldo cried, pointing to the Supremo. The headlights turned on and the engine revved up. It's driver had returned.

* * *

Stevonnie smiled to themselves and sped off after Kevin, making the tires squeal. They were going to win this, for their very existence! This was a great new experience.

Kevin was ahead, of course, but then saw his nemesis driving up behind him. "Finally." He scoffed.

They were soon side by side, and Kevin was ready to fire out his taunting. "You caught up. I was worried you'd miss seeing me win." He smirked.

There was nothing from the other.

He glanced over to see Stevonnie had thier window rolled up, and was smiling. Kevin frowned. What were they smiling at? There was nothing to be happy about, it clearly wasn't a taunting smile, what was going on. "What, suddenly you're shy?"

Stevonnie suddenly sped up, smiling still.

Kevin gave a grunt in surprise, and then narrowed his eyes and sped after them.

Stevonnie soon looked out the window and gasped in wonder. They could see all Beach City from here! And the moon showed it's pale beauty, and its reflection shimmered in the water. The stars seemed to twinkle like a thousand shimmering diamonds. They gave a tiny laugh in joy. It was so, so magnificent! And they were there, together, watching it. What a great time to be alive.

Kevin saw the teen's joy and sneered. Those kids were having fun? Were they even wondering about him? He then saw the finish and smirked. He pushed a button, activating a booster which sent him ahead of the fusion, and winning the race.

Stevonnie had been distracted, but soon came to thier senses and drove down to the crowd.

"Aw! I was rooting for you, Dondai!" Jenny called to them as they went out. Clearly, everyone was rooting for them, and all look disappointed that Kevin had won once more.

"Yeah, Kevin is the worst!" Ronaldo said, booing him.

Kevin of course kept his normal attitude. "What, what?" He whined sarcastically at the upset crowd. He then walked up to Stevonnie. "That's right! First place, baby! It's like I invented winning."

Stevonnie smiled, offering their hand for a shake of good will. "Good race."

Kevin looked very confused. What was this?! He looked at their hand suspiciously. "Are you trying to kiss your hand with my hand?" He asked softly.

Stevonnie laughed and then smiled at him. "You know, you were right about one thing."

Kevin only scoffed, rolling his eyes. "I know." He then glanced back at them. "About what?"

"The view from the mountain was pretty great." They answered happily.

Kevin gave a growl in annoyance. This person was two little kids! They didn't know better then him! "Hey! don't try to teach me a lesson! You lost!"

The fusion shrugged, walking to the car. "Second place really isn't that bad…" They then smirked and winked at him. "For my first time driving a car!"

Kevin felt like they did now. He gave a growl as the Dondai drove away from him. They thought they were so cool… "Look at you. You're so obsessed with me, you're gonna drive away." He called after them, their windows were already rolled up.

He ran after them on the road, yelling after them in desperation. "Fine! Go play with some kiddy toy cars! I could beat you at that, too!"

Stevonnie watched him from her rear-view mirror, then turned it to see their own smile.

"Don't forget!" Kevin called after them in anger, and slight deviation. "You're obsessed with me!" He then gave a few sobs. They weren't obsessed with him, maybe it was the other way around. "Obsessed! Obseeeeeessed!" He yelled, falling to his knees as Stevonnie drove off to home, happy and thinking, how great to be together!


	90. Resturant Wars

Connie was ready, Peedee was ready, it was time for her snack.

"I'd like some..." Connie paused, glancing up at the menu of the restaurant.

Peedee rolled his eyes, assuming her usual snack attack was for her favorite. "You going to say it?" He asked boredly.

Connie looked back at him. "Well, actually, I was thinking about getting something different today, if you don't mind."

"I don't. Maybe, I don't know, actual fries?" Peedee asked her. He leaned on the counter. He liked Connie, she was nice, but she stopped by nearly everyday, he needed a break. Alas, it would never come.

The girl thought about it and shook her head. "No, thank you!" She said pleasantly. "I would like something completely different from the bits! Off-menu!"

"Connie, you always order off-menu." Peedee muttered, ending her cool moment. He then saw she had pleading eyes and sighed. "I'll see what I can find. Be back in a sec." He turned and walked back into the restaurant.

"Thank you so much!" Connie called after him happily.

* * *

A few minutes later, Peedee ran to the window, eager to show Connie a new discovery. "Connie, check this out!"

Connie gasped in surprise, seeing a little tray of mozzarella sticks, with marinara sauce. They looked amazing! And they smelled even better than that! "Mozzarella sticks! And with sauce and everything!"

"I can't believe it either!" Peedee cried, watching her pick it up. "They were way back in the freezer for some reason. Feels good to fry something else for a change." He gave a small smile and Connie practically skipped away.

"Thank you!" She called over her shoulder, and walked down the boardwalk. She passed Fish Stew Pizza, unaware that she was being watched as she took a single tiny bite of a mozzarella stick.

"CONNIE!" A angry voice suddenly yelled, nearly making her choke in surprise. Kofi Pizza ran up to the girl, who slowly swallowed. He glared down upon her and her snack. "What is this?"

Connie managed to speak now and smiled weakly as she glanced up from the tray. "Um, they're m-"

"Bread... cheese... sauce! The basic elements of a pizza!" Kofi cried in horror and anger. He gave a snarl. "Where did it come from?"

Connie pointed to the fry shop. "Over there, but I was just-"

Kofi cut the girl off once more, narrowing his eyebrows in anger and disgust. "Fryman... infringing on my business." He turned to his shop, away from Connie and walked to it. "I have been ready for this day!"

A new sign was immediately put up, and Connie was shocked at what it said. "Now serving… fries?!"

She suddenly heard a deep voice, heavy with the rage of war. ""So… it begins anew,"

Connie turned to see Mr. Fryman's eyes were shadowed over, his teeth gritted as he knew of the pain this would cause. It was happening again… "Eh, Kofi?" He hissed at his greatest enemy.

Connie glanced back to see Kofi was out now behind her, and was smiling dangerously. "Just like old times, Fryman."

The girl's eyes were wide in surprise.

The fryman grew angrier. "Kofi!" He yelled in anger.

"Fryman!" Kofi shouted back, the same look of anger and hate in his eyes.

Connie awkwardly stood between them as they yelled together out for the whole town, it seemed the whole world to hear. "RESTAURANT WAAAAAR!" The girl looked at them confused. What were they talking about?

* * *

War. They were talking of war. A Restaurant War… It was Connie's humanself's first time seeing a real battlefield, and it wasn't bloody, it was covered in ketchup, ketchup, fries, pizza, and people, people that seemed to be dying. Connie wanted to make peace… She had to. Her mother had already started a war in one species, and her heir had carried it on to another.

Other people of the town looked shaken, and looked in great pain. Connie slowly walked into the boardwalk, and saw a employee at the shirt store gasp and hide from her in fear. This strange girl hadn't suffered, was she also one that had caused this horror?

The girl then gingerly stepped over a man she didn't know, who held a single slice of cheese pizza with fries on top of it. "Too many carbs!" The man nearly puked out.

Connie then saw a depressed looking pizza mascot outside the fryshop and walked up softly. "Peedee?"

The boy turned to the one who had made him such low self pride at this time, then shuttered away from her. "Don't look at me, Connie." He whispered softly in great embarrassment.

"But-!" Connie put a hand on his shoulder and he elbowed her away from him and his hideous new form.

"I said, don't look at me!" He screamed with a voice crack.

Connie flinched away in fear. She took a few moments and then asked a question she was sure near everyone in Beach City was asking, "W-What happened?"

Peedee gave a soft sigh in regret and shame. "I violated the food treaty…"

"A treaty, that explains it. If you break a treaty, the promises you made in it are broken, to break one of war is frightening." Connie murmured softly. "How did it happen?"

"Years ago…" Peedee whispered quietly, remembering how his father had told him. The guilt he felt was overwhelming. "My Dad and Kofi signed an agreement not to steal each other's businesses, but when I fried those mozzarella sticks," He looked up with fear in his eyes, like he was consumed by fire. "... I reignited the hot oil of war." The boy sighed once more, placing a hand to his face in shame.

Connie sighed as well. He didn't need to feel this way. "Don't blame yourself. I was the one who wanted a change… a surprise. I guess I got it."

Peedee frowned and glared at her. "That's right, it is your fault."

Connie felt bad, but at least he wasn't feeling guilty anymore.

"Hey Connie!" A cheery voice cried, making Connie turn. It was Mr. Fryman, he smiled widely at her. "As a valued customer, I want to know your thoughts on the new menu item!" He was so excited to show her, he nearly got her right in the face with the whipping out of the new food. "Deep-fried pizza!"

Connie gave a tiny smile, walking up. "That's very kind of you to offer, sir, but I think I'll just have fries for now."

The man's face darkened and said sternly. "Sorry, we're all out of fries."

"Out? But… Are you even out of the bits?" Connie asked, praying he'd say no. If she had grown up with different people raising her, maybe she wouldn't come for the bits everyday, since she knew they were so unhealthy, and maybe a human mother would disapprove. But she loved them here.

"Now we have pizza bits!" Fryman cried happily, displaying little balls of cheese and sauce.

Connie finally started to protest. "But how can you be out of fries? You're not giving what is advertised! I mean, this is a fryshop, you're Mr. Fryman! Your hair! It totally looks like-"

"Like what?" The man grunted, making her stop in her tracks. She gave a tiny shrug, not wanting to offend him.

Back in the fryshop, Connie saw Ronaldo was on his computer as always, struggling to find relief from this madness. "Ugh, I can't connect to Fish Stew Pizza's wifi."

"Hey, you got no time for interneting. You're doing deliveries now." His father said, dropping a big bag of pizzas on the teen's lap.

Ronaldo immensely protested. "But I don't even have a car!" He was clearly thinking of Jenny and how she did have a car for delivering.

"You got those wheelie shoes, don't ya?" Mr. Fryman frowned.

"Yeah…" Ronaldo realized that was true, and went on the ball of his shoe before skating off.

Connie peered in, feeling guilty.

* * *

The gem hybrid went to go check on the other side, the Pizzas, and how they were faring. She walked up to the counter and was shocked to see Jenny was working it, didn't she normally deliver? "Hello, Jenny! This is a pleasant surprise." Connie smiled.

"You're so sweet, girl, it's good to see you too." Jenny smirked happily. "I don't usually work the counter, but things have been crazy since the war was back on!" The two heard the phone ringing from somewhere in the back. "The phone's been ringing off the hook!"

"I'll get it!" Kiki called to her family, picking it up and balancing the receiver on her shoulder. "Thanks for calling Fish Stew Pizza. We do fries now."

Jenny glanced back to Connie, with a sigh, taking out a notepad and pen. "Anyway, I'm obligated to tell you about our special new menu item, French-fried pizza with French-fried crust and twice-baked French fries on the side." The teen gave a bored sigh. "'Cause we do fries now."

"Oh, well thank you, but I think I'll have my usual pepperon-" Connie was cut off by Kofi leaping up behind Jenny, seemingly from nowhere, and yelled her name, scaring both the girls.

"Hello Kofi." Connie smiled weakly.

"Before you give your order, you must sign," He suddenly heaved a huge stack of papers onto the counter, making Jenny back up. "these papers and pledge your allegiance to Fish Stew Pizza! Not only that, you'll be issued brand-new, permanent, V.I.P. pizza-eater card!"

"Sir, uh, well, I don't really go here too often, only with Steven, plus, are those papers legally binding?" Connie asked, backing away slightly from the man.

Kofi didn't care if she didn't come often, he wanted another person on his side! He took out a branding iron that would usually be used on cows that said vip, and edged towards Connie.

Connie ran out immediately, she wouldn't be a possession!

However, she nearly knocked into Mr. Fryman.

"Connie! You forgot your pizza bits!" He called, trying to force them in her hands.

Connie made a small noise in panic, backing away, and heard Kofi yell out behind her, and she turned to see the branding iron.

"You May not come often, but you're such a polite customer! Allow me to thank you!" Kofi cried with a crazy look in his eye.

"No!" Connie suddenly yelled, and ran out from between them, racing for the safety of home. "No, no, no!"

* * *

A few hours later, the children of the feuding fathers were all at the Beach House, where Connie held a meeting.

"Thank you all for coming," Connie muttered, walking in front of them, "Ronaldo, Kiki, Jenny, and Peedee." She narrowed her eyes and calmly turned to them. I've called you all here tonight to talk about the war, it must stop. This is insane, we have to stop them before all of Beach City is forced to choose a side!"

"Connie, how do you think we feel?" Jenny asked, with a eyebrow raised.

Connie then remembered they would be affected the most.

"Do you know how many metal concerts I've missed 'cause of this war?" Continued Jenny.

Her sister frowned. "How many?"

The twin paused, realizing she didn't exactly know. "Like… one?"

Ronaldo was the next to complain, Connie was slightly surprised he wasn't the first. "Do you know how much blogging I haven't been able to do?!" He slammed his fist on the table.

"I don't," Connie sighed softly. "but this, this is all my fault! It shouldn't suprise anyone that I made this happen, giving my mother-"

"What does a war between our dads have to do with your mom?" Peedee piped up.

Connie glanced at him and frowned. "Er, nothing… The point is, I'm fixing it!"

"But how?" Kiki sighed in despair.

Connie rubbed her temples. "Well, um…" She thought about all the wars and family wars she had read about and gasped in realization. "Oh! Ronaldo, Kiki, in a Shakespeare play, there was a girl and a boy who fell in love, but-"

"Connie, I think we all know Romeo and Juliet." Jenny said, cutting her off with a apologetic smile.

Connie blushed in embarrassment. "Right, of course. Anyway, Ronaldo and Kiki should pretend to be in love! Like the Montagues and Capulets, they may realize the error of their ways!"

Kiki frowned. "Connie, you do know how that story ends, right?"

Connie nodded. "Very tragically, and I cried, but Kofi and Mr. Fryman will come to their senses and plan a wedding, they won't put fighting over love, will they?"

"Maybe you're right, you two should do it!" Peedee said to his brother and brother's may-be fake girlfriend.

Kiki shrugged. "We could give it a try. I'll do anything to get this war over with."

"Yes! This'll be such a twist for your fathers! It's going to be great!" Connie cried, practically twirling around.

The girl's hope was shattered when a voice interrupted her. "No way!"

They all glanced at Ronaldo who had spoke, he looked upset at her plan, and they all wanted to know why.

The teen took a breath, ready to reveal his so well-kept secret. "We can't do this because I…."

They all waited with a look of confusion.

"... have a girlfriend."

Connie and Kiki's confusion grew while Jenny and Peedee practically threw that statement out the window, certain he was lying.

"Where she at tho'?" Jenny asked with a smile.

Peedee nodded in agreement. "I was thinking the same thing, I've never seen her."

Connie shook out of the trance and laughed slightly. "It's just acting, Ronaldo, after we fix the war, just spend less and less time together over a few days, and I'm sure no one will notice. Your dad and Kofi will go back to their normal menus, no more problems, it's a solid plan, I believe."

Ronaldo didn't think so and looked nervous. "I… got a bad feeling about this…"

"Shut up, Ronaldo!" Jenny called, putting a arm around her twin. "Nothing bad is going to happen, and you'll get to spend time with the cutest girl in Beach City." Jenny made a noise while blowing on her sister's cheek, making Kiki giggle.

* * *

About half a hour later, the plan was beginning.

Ronaldo and Kiki were on their opposite sides, both holding flowers.

Ronaldo thrust his bouquet to his fake lover, wanting it to look as if he was truly in love with her. "Ah, Kiki, my darling!"

Kiki hid her flowers behind her back. "Oh, Ronaldo, my sweet!"

The two ran to each other, grabbing each other in a near embrace. They gazed at each other with passion, little would their fathers know that it was a passion to finish the war.

"My dear, sweet Kiki, whom I love with all my blog!" Ronaldo breathed.

Mr. Fryman poked his head out of the window in the shop and frowned in confusion. Was his son around one of Kofi's daughters? And why? They didn't normally talk…. "What the…"

Kiki gave a fake girly giggle, her voice high. "Oh, Ronaldo, you're so sweet and quirky in a way I can tolerate!"

Kofi was looking for his youngest daughter, and saw her out there with Fryman's boy, his older boy. Was he trying to ruin his daughter? He stomped out of the door, demanding a answer to this. "Kiki! Why aren't you working your shift?!"

"Yeah, come on Ronaldo! We have customers to take care of!" The other man roared.

Ronaldo gave a loving sigh. "But, Dad, ever since this war started, I've had to spend countless hours away from my beloved Kiki."

The fathers walked out to their children, shocked. When had this happened?! They both yelled in unision, the only thing they could agree on was this was sudden. "What?!"

"It's true!" Kiki laughed with a blush. "The only way for us to be together is if we quit working!"

Right on cue, Connie and the siblings walked up behind the fathers in their ear shot.

"Oh! How romantic! A couple emerging from the problem of war!" Connie cried, placing a hand on her cheek with a sham of shock. "What a twist!"

"It isn't really sudden, Connie, we've loved each other for some time!" Ronaldo replied, taking Kiki's hands in his own.

Kofi watched the teen hold his little girl's hands, and frowned, would he treat her right? "Mm-hmmm! You two are only hugging, right?"

Ronaldo chuckled nervously, releasing her hands. "Y-Yes sir! Only hugs and longing looks!"

Fryman looked at his fellow father. "Well, Kofi, love is a beautiful thing."

"Yes, love is beautiful. We must end this feud in order for this love to blossom." Kofi nodded.

"Yeah! The restaurant war is officially over!" Mr. Fryman called, the children started cheering. It was all over!

"Ronaldo?" A shy and choked voice said, making them turn to a teenage girl, holding a dvd case that had a koala on it. She frowned. "I come all this way to return your 'Princess Koala' DVDs only to find you with another girl?" The broken-hearted young woman asked softly, nodding to Kiki.

Jenny and Peedee slid in front of their fathers, not believing their eyes. They let out a long and very confused, "Whhhhaaaaat?!"

Ronaldo back away from Kiki, trying to prove to his love that she was his one and only. "Jane, my sweet, this was all a trick to get my dad to stop selling mozzarella sticks!"

"Save it for your blog, Keep Beach City Single!" Jane shouted, turning away in tears before running off.

"Jane, my Ohime-sama. Ooh!" Ronaldo cried in agony, soon falling on his face and sobbing in agony.

The fathers saw how much Ronaldo cared for Jane, and not Kiki, and crossed their arms. They had absolutely no reason to be near each other anymore.

"The deal is off!" Kofi spat.

Mr. Fryman narrowed his eyes. "Fine by me!" He said bitterly. He then walked back to his shop, calling for Peedee to fire up the friers.

"Kiki! Pick up the phone!" Kofi yelled, making his daughters go back inside to live once more with their labour filled jobs.

"Jannne!" Ronaldo howled to the sky, praying she'd come back for him.

* * *

Connie had called another meeting of the food family siblings, and sat between the twins, thinking hard about what to do as Ronaldo continued to cry and frantically text Jane. Peedee sat on a stair, his chin on his hand in thought.

"Ugh, what are we gonna do?!" Jenny moaned suddenly, making Connie glance up.

"Well, last time the war ended, it was because of a treaty, so I was told, what was so challenging that it stopped the restaurant war?"

Kiki then remembered the story her grandmother had once told her that explained it all. "Well, you know where Suitcase's Sams is? It used to be a restaurant called The Everything Buffet."

Jenny gasped in memory and immediately said the obvious. "Oh yeah! They sold everything!"

Her twin nodded in agreement, then contuied the story. "But it wrecked the boardwalk's economy! Not one store could compete…. But just when everyone thought all hope was lost, our Dad and Mr. Fryman teamed up and ran them out of town!"

Connie thought for a moment then smiled. "Ladies and gentlemen, I have a plan!"

* * *

That very night, the Pizza and Fryman family stood outside the new restaurant, Dishes of the Universe which was run by none other than miss Universe herself. According to the children of the families, it was all the town was talking about now.

The door suddenly slammed open and Jasper marched out. "You better have come for some good food, and if you don't like it and you tell my kid about it and make her work go to waste, we're going to have a pro-"

Connie rushed up behind her with a nervous smile, wearing a simple but professional looking black and white outfit with a flower in her pocket and her hair up. "Jasper! I sorta wanted to be hostess?"

"I know, kiddo!" Jasper smiled at her, ruffling her girl's hair. "Just was giving them a… uh, intro!"

Kofi was angry and tried to protest, but Jasper glared down at him, then walked back inside.

"Please, pardon her, she is just as excited as I am to welcome to the grand opening of Dishes of the Universe! We are quite pleased to have such well renowned restaurant owners at our service! Come in!" She cried, Jasper holding open the door, insist on being the restaurant's bodyguard, though she didn't really need to.

Twinkling white diamonds hung from strands on the ceiling, and two tables were prepared elegantly with every rule of setting a table obeyed. Fryman took of his cap in respect of the young owner, and she lead the families to their seats.

"Nice ambiance." Peedee murmured softly to his father.

Fryman crossed his arms. "It's alright." He coughed.

"There's not enough tables!" Kofi cried, seeing only the two tables.

"There's just enough tables, daddy." Jenny groaned in annoyance, sitting at their table while the other family sat at theirs.

Peridot walked out in a tuxedo to the Frymans. "Hello, fry family, order your food and I will record it down."

"I'm full…" Ronaldo whispered, "of sadness!" He slammed his head on the table, and started to sob once more over the loss his girlfriend.

"I will take the Parmesan truffle fries." Mr. Fryman ordered, ignoring his oldest son.

"Okay, thanks." Peridot muttered, scribbling down the order.

She then walked over to the Pizzas as Fryman whispered to Peedee, "Weird name for fries, way too uptight!"

"What do you want?" Peridot asked Kofi abruptly.

"I will have the fruit pizza, but only because your real food is fries, I sell fries."

"Do you?" Peridot asked, clearly bored out of her mind.

"Fruit? On pizza? What a joke!" Kofi whispered with a laughter to Kiki.

Peridot bustled back to Connie, handing back the orders.

The girl smiled. "Perfection. They ordered the dishes I knew they would."

"That's because you coordinated the dishes to appeal to their real marketing." Peridot answered back.

"Lapis! One fry, one pizza! Chop chop!" Connie called, clapping her hands.

* * *

A few minutes later, the food was ready and Peridot placed the fruit pizza in front of Kofi, who scoffed.

"There's no version of parmesan for this 'fruit pizza'." Kofi smirked.

Peridot rolled her eyes. "Why would we add cheese to fruit, pizza man?" She then marched over to the Fryman family and placed down thier meal.

"Uh, can I get some ketchup?" Mr. Fryman asked awkwardly.

Peridot shook her head as she walked back to Connie's side. "It is not needed."

"Ha! This place is all talk!" Fryman announced to his sons, picking up a single fry. "Why on earth would you not need ketchup for fries?" He then took a bite and gasped in surprise. "A-All this flavor! The spices, the parmesan! It's like my mouth has entered a new region of flavor!"

Connie watched and smirked, clasping her hands togther. She had bested him, just as she thought she could.

Kofi meanwhile had taken a bite of a slice of fruit pizza, and dropped the slice with shock. "This is… so good! And without the grease of a regular pizza, it is healthier! And it can be served as a dessert!"

"It's amazing!" Fryman cried.

"It's genius!" Kofi gasped.

The two grown men looked at each other, nodded, then angrily looked at the proud girl who stood watching. They walked up to her.

"Hello, dear sirs, I do hope you are enjoying your meal and this restaurant overall, may I help you with anything?" Connie asked sweetly, with her hands behind her back.

Fryman cracked his knuckles. "Connie, we didn't want to do this, but…" Jasper was immediately at Connie's side.

"You want to go, buddy? Huh? Huh?!" Jasper asked with fury, getting in a fight stance.

Connie smiled pleasantly, and waved Jasper off. "Stand down, I'd like to hear what they have to say."

Jasper grumbled out a ok and stepped back, glaring at the men.

They suddenly fell to their knees in a begging stance, and Connie smiled down at them mercifully.

"Please, shut this place down!" Kofi begged at Connie's feet.

Connie put her hand on her cheek. "Oh? What is this? You wish for me to shut down my lovely restaurant? Why, I couldn't possibly…"

"Please, Connie, we can't compete with this place!" Kofi cried in agony.

Fryman was just as desperate as him. "It'll run us out of business!"

"There's already a line!" Kofi gasped, pointing to the door.

Connie frowned, she had only told Pizzas and Frymans, she turned to see little Onion with a fork and knife looking in and staring at her. She cringed in fear. Of course he knew about it.

"Well gentleman, I'm quite afraid I won't unless…" Connie trailed off for dramatic effect, looking down at them. "You put a end to this foolish war! Cook for yourselves and the good of the boardwalk! No more cooking out of hate and spite!"

The men looked surprised, but then rose, and smiled at each other.

"Let's go back to what we do best!" Kofi cried.

"Agreed!" His old friend said.

The two embraced, and the children excluding Ronaldo cheered at their victory.

"Good job, daddy." Jenny smiled, hugging her father.

Mr. Fryman glanced at his son, ready to tell the good news. "Do you hear that, Ronaldo? The war's over!"

Ronaldo was still sobbing at the table, but gave a thumbs up.

"Another crisis caused be me solved." Connie smiled, turning to the Temps.

Peridot put a hand on her shoulder. "Connie, you didn't mean to cause a war, just like your mother."

Lapis interrupted the tender moment by popping up between them. "So, who wants some food-?"

"I ate it all." Jasper suddenly yelled in the background, and they turned to see the fries and pizza were gone. Connie laughed.


	91. Kiki’s Pizza Delivery Service

Connie happily arranged the silverware next to her plate for herself in front of a vase of yellow sunflowers in perfect table manners of course, then twirled back to the kitchen to toss the chicken caesar salad, humming a slight tune. She glanced up in surprise at a sudden knock. That was odd, not many people came all the way up to the Beach House.

Connie walked over and beamed, seeing Kiki. "Kiki! Hi! It's so good to see you!" She smiled happily, running up and opening the door. "Whatever brings you here?"

Kiki smiled at Connie. "Hey! Good to see you too! Now, I know for a fact it wasn't you on the phone, so who ordered five pizzas with all the toppings and extra meat and a single one with only pepperoni?"

Connie frowned and tried to speak but was interrupted when the Gem Temple door opened behind her. Amethyst and Jasper ran into the room, both yelling "PIZZA!"

The girl leaped out of the way and the Quartz' snatched their food before running right back to Jasper's room. "Jasper suddenly placed a pizza on the warp pad, calling to Connie. "This one's yours kiddo, eat something more than leaves!"

"Thank-!" The temple door closed before Connie could finish.

Kiki laughed, looking at Connie with an eyebrow arched and a nervous smile, she looked… exhausted.

Connie gave an apologetic smile, walking up. "Those two decided to hang out a bit, I guess! I'm surprised you're doing deliveries now, is Jenny feeling okay?"

"Oh yeah, she's fine, she just busted the pizza car." Kiki laughed.

Connie gasped in surprise. "Oh no! How did that happen?"

The other girl smiled with a shrug. "Apparently, blasting one of Sour Cream's mixtapes totally blasts the tires."

"Ah. Music is quite a powerful thing!" Connie answered with a giggle.

"It sure is!" Kiki smiled. "Anyways, it means I've gotta deliver all these orders by foot while Jenny takes the car to the shop." She then noticed the table setting. "Ooh! Fancy! You having a boy over?" Kiki asked playfully.

Connie blushed and nervously laughed. "No, no! No boys allowed when I'm having some 'me' time!" She trailed off and smiled up at her. "Um, you… don't have to, but do you maybe want to join in?" She hoped she'd say yes, because Connie really wanted some company while the gems were away doing who knew what.

"Thanks, Connie, but I still have to run around town and deliver all these pizzas." Kiki's sunny smile faded into a frown of grim stress. "It seems a lot of people are wanting some 'me' time tonight." She then saw Connie watching her with concern and returned to her bright and bubbly self again to reassure her. She picked up a stack of pizzas both four high in each hand. "But it's alright. I love running. Anyways, Gotta get back to it! Later, Connie!" Kiki ran away to town to continue the stressful job

Connie ran to the deck and called out goodbye before she walked back into the house and sat down to her meal.

"Poor Kiki, that job must be so stressful, but I'm sure it's wonderful exercise!" Connie muttered softly to herself, trying to make Kiki looking like she was about to collapse look like a good thing... it really wasn't working. "Maybe I'll ask if I can help tomorrow, but first, dinner!" She cheered happily as she lifted up a slice

* * *

A few minutes later and Connie had crashed on the couch, fast asleep after eating the salad and nearly the entire pizza minus two slices.

In her dream though, she was flying in a bright blue sky with fluffy clouds around her. She giggled happily, doing a flip in the air and then twirling. The girl looked up at the sky and then noticed the sky darkening. She gasped, not again! She couldn't face another nightmare of her being all alone and failing the Temps! She nearly accepted it until she saw the sky was somehow blue again in a mere second, and it seemed she had switched off from her nightmare.

The girl then noticed she was flying over a sea of cheese that was surrounded by slices of pepperoni pizza slices.

"Oh! I guess this was influenced by my dinner!" Connie assumed, flying near the cheese and looking at her own reflection. She put her hand in it and made a face of disgust, yep, totally cheese. She was about to take her hand out when suddenly, an arm plunged out of the cheese, grabbing her hand.

Connie gave a cry, it wouldn't let go! She flew up and the arm revealed its owner, Kiki, who had been drowning in cheese.

Kiki coughed as if she had swallowed water down into her throat, choking as the cheese fell off her.

"Oh my gosh! Kiki! Are you alright?! My powers! I must've entered your dream!" Connie yelled, taking her friend higher in the air.

Suddenly, out of the cheesy sea came a hand that grabbed Kiki's right leg, trying to drag the girls down to their doom. The older teen cried out in fear, gripping Connie tight, she didn't want to drown again!

Connie struggled, pulling on her friend to set her free. She gave a grunt in effort as another globby hand grabbed Kiki's other leg. The girl's cried out, and Connie finally, using all her strength, escaped.

Connie flew Kiki away, both panting for air.

"That was terrifying! I thought I'd never have to fight food again after my lunch attacked me months ago!" Connie moaned, looking down at Kiki. "What does that thing want from you, Kiki?"

The teen looked up at her little savior. "I don't know, but whatever it is, you must keep going! It won't give up!"

Sure enough, the hands made of cheese emerged, and tried to snatch Kiki from her friend. Connie luckily had a head start, and she safely landed Kiki on a isle in the sea that was actually a piece of pepperoni.

"Stay back! I don't want you to get hurt!" Connie called to Kiki, flying up in front of the hands. "Hey you hands, you wanna pizza me?

Kiki gasped in fear. That thing had drown her so many times! Connie had no chance, right? But then again… "Be careful, Connie!"

"Don't worry about me!" Connie answered heroically. "I'm a natural!"

A ginormous golden sword suddenly appeared in her hands that could be held by the cheese ones perfectly. Connie flew up with a yell and slashed the hands of their wrists before slicing down the rest.

Kiki called to Connie as she landed. "Connie! That was so brave!"

Connie smiled. "Of course, Kiki! Oh! Did you like my pun? Jasper taught it to me last week while fighting a monster… while at the same time she was eating a slice of pizza."

"It was great, Connie." Kiki laughed.

Suddenly, Connie heard a falcon screech, and turned to watch as a majestic giant bird landed beside her. He was Arcamitris, a beloved character of the Spirit Morph Saga.

"Come, Connie, there is much we must discuss." The falcon said in a deep and broad voice.

Connie nodded once and turned to Kiki. "Looks like I have to go, good seeing you!"

Kiki nearly fell back as the bird took flight, but waved goodbye to Connie. "See ya!"

* * *

In the morning, Connie was out on her usual morning walk, off to look at the book about symbolisms in dreams she had looked at before, when she overheard a plead.

"Please, Kiki, just one more time? I seriously can't miss this show." Jenny cried to her sister, hands in a begging clutch, her knees slightly bent. "It's Uber Rage's first concert back in the States since they got banned!"

Connie paused, walking up a bit closer to see it Kiki would allow herself a break.

Kiki gave a small sigh, shrugging her shoulders very slightly. "Jenny, I'm not sure…. I've been covering for you for almost two weeks now!"

"Kiki, seriously, this concert is gonna change my life!" Jenny moaned, trying to persuade her sister even more. "And the ticket was, like, $40!"

Kiki frowned. "Is that a lot for a concert?" She hadn't been to one since she and Jenny were tweens, and that was their first one.

"More than average?" Jenny shrugged, not actually sure, which happened a lot.

Kiki fell silent, knowing she had lost this fight, Jenny just had so much fun at those concerts.. "Okay, I'll cover for you."

"Yes!" Jenny cried and threw herself to hug Kiki.

Kiki smiled.

"This is why your my favorite twin!" Jenny proclaimed, holding her sister's shoulders and smiling happily at her.

Kiki laughed slightly. "I'm your only twin."

Her sister ignored that and kissed Kiki on the cheek before jumping into the pizza car and saying hello to Connie who waved back. Jenny revved up the car before zooming off. They heard her yell, "Don't tell Dad!" right after.

Connie walked up to Kiki. "What a nice thing to do for your sister!"

Kiki shrugged a bit. "That's me, the nice one."

Connie then remembered her dream. "Um.. Last night, I believe I… entered your dream… I didn't mean to, honest! I knew it had to be my powers, because I never dream of pizza, salads on occasion, but not-"

"Wait! You really saved me? That was real?" Kiki gasped.

Connie panicked slightly, already planning on making a near copy of the letter she gave Sadie on her powers this afternoon. "I'm sorry! You probably didn't want me in your head! Ghaa, imagine if I accidentally took-!"

"Connie!" Kiki laughed, grabbing the girl's shoulders and making her look up. "You don't get it, this is great!"

"Great?" Connie asked dryly. Her powers seemed great to a human besides Steven? Had that ever happened before? She tried to recall, but nothing came to mind. "B-But how? What if I messed up your dream? What if that dream meant something?"

"I always have that dream, and I always drown! I don't care if it meant something, I finally was saved!" Kiki gushed happily while Connie stared, still in shock. "I haven't got a good night's sleep in weeks!" She moaned, bending down and putting a hand on Connie's shoulder. "You're my total hero, Connie! You think you can do it again?"

Connie smiled. "Um… I guess, I could try? Drowning nightmares are pretty scary…"

"Thank goodness!" Kiki exclaimed, then her eyes widened and her voice grew grim, even the aura around her seemed to darken. "Because... I seriously have that dream, like, every. single. night."

Connie's smile faltered.

Suddenly, the phone rang.

Kiki was knocked back into reality. "Oh! I got to go!" She smiled at Connie gratefully. "Connie, thank you so much! I'll see you later!" The teen called.

"Yep! In your dreams!" Connie beamed.

Kiki laughed. "Nice one!"

Connie then realized it had sounded like a joke, and smiled.

* * *

That night, Connie tied her hair up in a ponytail before bed. She was going to be a hero again!

And again,

And again,

And again.

Even though she liked hanging out with Kiki, they had inside jokes, Jenny aways was very appreciative of their help, and Connie made great pizza puns, she couldn't hide how tired she was getting after days of fighting the monster, because her brain wouldn't let her sleep. As she got more tired, she almost nearly let Kiki drown before realizing and chopping the beast up. She had apologized profusely.

After nearly a week of doing this, Connie was so exhausted that she was practically falling off her bed with large dark circles under her eyes. She had even stopped reading a book before bed at this point, she just couldn't do it anymore.

"Connie?" A voice asked, sounding surprised.

Connie mumbled slightly before opening her eyes. It took a bit to see it was Kiki, holding a pizza.

"Kiki, what are you doing here so early in the morning? … Didn't I lock the door last night." Connie yawned softly, getting out of her bed and taking a brush through her long and crazy bed head.

"Your big orange friend let me in and ordered ne to check on you since she was about to leave when I got here. It's 3 o'clock… Did you sleep okay?" Kiki asked, and showed her the pepperoni pizza she had brought.

Connie felt sick at the sight of it. "Er, no thank you." She then looked up, pausing while brushing her hair. "As for sleeping, I'm doing well." She then sat on her bed before falling asleep sitting up.

"Connie!"

Connie awoke with a cry, "Kiki! You have to quit your job!"

Kiki looked at her like she was crazy, and Connie honestly wondered if she was from lack of sleep. The older teen just laughed her secret plead away. "What?"

"I think you have a serious problem with pizza, your subconscious says enough." Connie explained herself.

"I don't have a problem with pizza!" Kiki smiled.

"I don't know, Kiki!" Connie said quickly with a plastered on smile, and her teeth gritted with sarcasm. Kiki wouldn't accept the truth! "I think you do!"

Kiki looked surprised at her tone and Connie softened.

"I-I'm sorry, Kiki," Connie whispered. "That was rude of me."

"No, it's okay. I get it. I've been asking too much of you." Kiki sighed in apology after noticing the dark bags under Connie's eyes. "I just wish these dreams would stop."

Connie stared at the pizza Kiki had brought them gasped. "Oh! We've been thinking about it wrong, we should go to the root of the problem, the sauce, where it all started! But after that, I can't keep helping you, I may not be able to if I'm too exhausted."

Kiki nodded, now in full support of the idea.

"These nightmares end, tonight!" Connie called out in determination.

* * *

That night, both girls had fallen asleep, and both were in Kiki's mind.

They each held a single pizza cutter, a small but effective weapon against the cheesy nightmare forces.

"You ready to cut this cheese?" Connie asked to her partner.

Kiki giggled at her joke, but still nodded. "Ready!"

Connie realized the joke and smiled.

Suddenly, cheese hands surrounded them. They gasped and then went to work, slashing the monsters away.

They quickly realized the cheese was near unstoppable, they kept emerging and wouldn't stop.

"We can't keep fighting off the cheese. It just won't stop!" Kiki cried in panic.

Connie nodded in agreement. "You're right! We got to find out where all this cheese is coming from!"

Suddenly, the hands multiplied and engulfed the girls, trying to bake them into the dream world, forever.

Just as time was about up for them, they burst out, Connie flying them up and holding Kiki. As they flew, suddenly a huge structure formed a head out of the cheese. It looked identical to Kiki.

The girls gasped.

"It's me?" Kiki whispered in surprise, hanging on to Connie's back. She was disgusted. "Now, that is nasty."

The two flew in, and soon saw a cheese sea inside. Little fish that were really pepperoni and anchovies leapt out at them, trying to bite the two and stop them from finding the root of the problem. Connie gasped and avoided them best she could.

"That was close!" Connie cried in relief.

The girls suddenly heard a loud and obnoxious moaning, and looked up in surprise.

"That voice, I recognize it." Connie said.

"Whoever it is, they sound in pain!" Kiki whispered with sympathy, her caring heart already taking action. "We've got to find them!"

After following the moans, they came into a large and cavernous room, which held a single cheese pond. They landed softly and walked up.

The girls started then as the cheese started to take a human form, shifting and molding to look just like Kiki's sister.

"Jenny?!" Both girls cried in surprise.

The thing moaned once more, reaching out for the older teen. "Kiki…"

"I'm here, Jenny!" Kiki exclaimed, taking her imposter sister's hands. She had played right into the fake's trap. Cheese started growing up Kiki's arms, and she gasped in surprise.

Connie already had her sword, and ran to save her friend. "Kiki!"

"No, wait!"

Connie halted.

"I think she's trying to tell me something!"

"Kiki…" The thing groaned.

"What is it, Jenny?"

"Thanks for delivering all those pizzas for me." The cheese thing said, still with a monotone voice.

"Oh, it's okay. I totally don't mind!" Kiki fibbed, forcing a smile on her face. "That's what twins are for!"

The thing saw that its prey had grown weaker still and it wrapped another cheesy tentacle around the teen's waist, pulling her closer. Kiki gave a cry, struggling in its firm grip, sweating.

"Kiki, you're lying!" Connie called with determination.

Kiki knew deep down that she was, but her pride blinded that, and she was confused. "What?"

"You don't want her to know you do mind!" Connie answered.

"Argh! It doesn't matter!" Kiki yelled, panting for air and straining as the cheese tried to take her away.

Connie was getting insistent now, already knowing that Kiki needed to stop this, not her. "You feel you have to keep your emotions hidden from her to keep her happy, but you shouldn't! Your feelings matter! Just tell her no!"

"Ugh, I-I can't!" Kiki gasped, fighting to keep herself on land.

Connie flew closer, looking her the eyes. "Why not?!"

Kiki grunted in effort. "I... I don't want to let her down! I'm her favorite twin!"

"When I said I couldn't help you anymore after this, you understood!" Connie yelled.

"But this is different. She's my sister!" Kiki shouted.

"That's right! And she cares about you, too!" Connie called. "Do you think she'd want you to go through this?!"

Kiki stared at the fake of her twin sister, her only sister, her first friend since the moment of birth. "...No."

"Does she even know this is happening to you?"

Kiki gave a whimper as the cheese went up to her neck. "No!"

"You've got to tell her!" Connie cried, but the girl was soon ignored, because the imposter Jenny had grabbed Kiki's attention away.

"Hey, Kiki, I want to ask you something." The thing said to its creator. It's eyebrows went down and a weak and seemingly helpless smile showed, trying to make the teen feel sympathy for her and once again think it was her sister. "There's gonna be a really cool cheese rave in the pizza cave tonight. I have to be there. Will you cover for me again?"

Kiki was afraid, but then her face hardened with anger. She wouldn't cover for this monster! And she didn't want to cover for her real sister anymore, not without a break! "NO!"

Her voice seemed to resonate and both the pizza Jenny and Connie were surprised.

Slowly, the cheese that was engulfing her body up to her throat went down, releasing her from its grasp. Kiki backed away in horror as the thing gave a hideous moan.

Then, her inner demon rolled its pepperoni eyes, putting a hand on its hip as it melted away. "Okay, fine."

The girls saw the cavern melt away around them to reveal a beautiful night sky with twinkling stars and the cool and calm beach. Connie noticed there were still some pizza slices in the ocean, but had a feeling Kiki liked them there, it was her dream after all.

"You did it! I'm so proud of you!" Connie beamed landing slowly and gently on the sand.

"Yeah! All of the cheese is gone!" Kiki cried in relief and joy. She then saw at her foot a little splatter of cheese and a pepperoni fish. "Well, most of it."

The girls sat down, looking at the peaceful scene. After all they had done, it was so beautiful, even if they could see it nearly every night at their own beach, this felt special.

"Man.. dreams are weird…" Kiki mumbled to Connie.

Connie nodded, brushing off little pepperoni fish from her nightgown. "I agree with that!"

* * *

The next morning, Connie walked up to Fish Stew Pizza just as Jenny opened it and started to sweep outside.

"Good morning Jenny!" Connie greeted her pleasantly, wondering where her twin sister was.

Jenny smiled. "Oh, hi, Connie!"

"Is Kiki around? I wanted to see if she was feeling any better." Connie said with hope that she was off doing something she loved. She then yawned, and smiled innocently. "Last night, I fought the pizza in her dreams that morphed into you to trick Kiki into accepting all that stress and the eventual breaking down."

Jenny was rightfully very confused, but then shrugged it off with a smile. "I don't know what that means, but Kiki is fine. She's taking the day off." The teen sweeped up the sidewalk, explaining how it had happened that she was working and not her sister. "This morning, we had a twin talk. She said I was using up all her "me" time, and I was like, if you're just gonna spend your "me" time running anyway, you might as well carry some pizzas for me." Jenny then smirked with the thought of her loving sister. "But I can't say no to my favorite twin."

"Excellent." Connie beamed. "So, where is she now?"

Jenny gestured off to the distance, and Connie saw Kiki was grinning wide as she ran, too wrapped up even to notice.

Connie sighed in relief, a sleepy, but happy smile forming on on her face.

"She deserves a break after working so hard for me." Jenny said, looking out at her sister. "Right, Connie?"

She heard a tiny snore and turned to see Connie give a cry in startling awake.


	92. Monster Reunion

Connie laid on her bad, reading a comic about a girl who had to kill her own sister in order to keep her safe. Very tragic...

Two pages were stuck together and she accidentally made a tiny rip in one while turning it.

"Oh no!" Connie gasped in horror. "Ronaldo will be furious!" She cried in panic, for she had borrowed it from him. And to make it worse, she had ripped the hero transformation page! He was going to be so upset at her!

She sighed, and licked her finger in order to take the two pages apart and keep reading, but the moment her fingertips touched the page, a sparkle came out and touched the rip, healing it!

"My powers! They're back!" Connie squealed in triumph. She then realized something and beamed.

The girl fumbled down the stairs, knocking straight into Lapis.

Lapis in her surprise dropped a plate from her bubble of soapy water she was carrying it in. The plate broke on impact with the unforgiving floor.

"Lazuli, you shattered it!" Peridot screeched, running up to the plate from the soapy sink. Connie saw that she and Lapis had been washing dishes while Jasper sat idly by.

"Oh no, it wasn't her fault, it was mine, but look, I can fix it with my powers! They're back!" Connie proclaimed, licking her hand and about to touch a shard.

"Are you crazy?! You could make yourself bleed!" Peridot cried, shoving her child away from the shards. "It's nice that you got your powers back, Connie, but Jasper, clean this up!"

Jasper looked annoyed and then gave a growl. "Did you just tell me what to do."

Peridot made a petrified sound before struggling out. "I mean, you've well, um-"

"Fine!" Jasper cried, and with one jump and a scoop, got all the plate shards.

"Welp, back to lame dishes." Lapis shrugged, making a fart noise before twirling around to the sink.

"I was thinking, if I had my powers back, I mean, it would be quite logical to assume that-"

"Nope." Jasper interrupted Connie.

"But you didn't even-"

"Let me finish, kid. You told that monster friend of yours you'd be back for her, and now you think you can heal her corruption?" Jasper finished with a eyebrow raised.

"Oh yes, I suppose I made it pretty obvious." Connie smiled weakly.

"Nope, I just have a great memory." Jasper said bluntly, as if challenging her to say more.

"Would there be any chance you could change your mind?" Connie asked, placing her hands in s begging position.

Jasper stared down at her coldly.

Connie looked up at her with big sad eyes and blinked her eyelashes. "Pretty please?"

* * *

Jasper couldn't resist her kid's begging for too long and took her to the burning room.

Connie looked up at the bubbles, scanning them for her friend. She gasped, seeing her gem. "There! Right there!" She pointed at it, and tried to leap up and get it, however, she couldn't exactly fly, or float or hover at all, so she fell back on the floor.

Lapis flew up and got the bubbled gem, taking it gently down to Connie.

"Hello, old friend!" Connie beamed, hugging the bubble.

"Connie, this may not be wise, you have so much power, but I'm afraid you may be disappointed-" Connie stopped Peridot.

"I have the power of a Diamond! I can heal her, and every other corrupted gem!" Connie replied. "I'll be fine!"

Lapis then flew up again and grabbed a bubbled bag of vegetables, which were still fresh.

"Don't forget these!" Lapis smiled, holding the bubble tightly.

"Oh! She loves veggies, just like me!" Connie remembered. It had been so long, even if she had thought of Centi nearly every day. She then turned to her guardians. "Everyone, prepare yourselves, she may be in shock and dangerous at first, but I'm sure after that, she'll be fine!"

"Connie, be careful, your human body is fragile! What if you get hurt?!" Peridot cried. Jasper shushed her.

The older Temps had already mentally prepared, and made their weapons on her request.

Connie then popped the bubble and watched in wonder as Centipeetle reformed.

"You can do it, Connie!" Lapis called as Connie licked her hand, ready to heal her friend.

"Ah, be careful Connie!" Peridot moaned in fear for her baby.

Connie ran up and put her hand on her friend's gem, and gasped in surprise when she saw that Centi was gaining arms and legs looking near humanoid!

The gem regenerated, and fell to the ground. She had skin near the color of Connie's, a torn shirt, a tail, and a wild mangle of hair.

Connie already knew that she may not have healed her entirely, but was still excited. She grabbed the veggies and ran to her friend happily. "Centipeedle! I came back, just like I promised!"

Centipeedle turned, noticing she was not alone. She screeched in fear and anger.

Connie stopped and slowly reached for her friend, trying to take her hand.

Centi leapt away, nearly falling down. She hissed at Connie.

"You don't remember me." Connie whispered, heartbroken. "Maybe, uh, you need more of my power?"

She reached to Centi, but Peridot pulled her back.

"Don't you touch her!" Peridot snapped, and Connie realized she had never heard such sharpness in her voice before…

"But why not?" Connie asked softly.

Peridot rolled her eyes. "Y-you could hurt yourself, obviously."

"You did a great job, kid, I've never seen it work this good before!" Jasper beamed.

"It didn't work enough." Connie whispered in anger, shrugging Peridot off her. "I'm a Diamond, I want to be able to heal her, completely and entirely!"

Peridot sighed. "She's not cracked, Connie, she's-"

"Corrupted, I know… Her brain can't be fixed, you already told me that…" Connie whispered softly. Then thought to herself, "After me asking you guys for weeks, you finally told me. I mean, what kid wouldn't ask questions about all of this?

"Kid, I'm sorry it didn't work like you wanted, but we should put her back in that bubble." Jasper muttered, forming her helmet.

Centipeedle looked at her reflection in a vein of the crystal heart and squawked in surprise.

Connie shook her head, running in front of Centi. "No, Jasper, don't!"

Jasper looked at Lapis, and the woman gently used her wings to fly over to Connie and tried to pull her away. "Connie, you don't have to watch-"

"No! She's not a monster anymore, she never was one after I popped her bubble! I-I healed her this much, maybe I can heal her again! I promised her!"

Jasper narrowed her eyes.

Connie's grew big with slight tears and she pouted her lip. "Pretty please?"

All the Temps sighed in defeat, breaking at their child's plea.

"Urgh. Fine." Jasper grunted.

Connie gave a squeal in happiness. "I can't wait! She could sleep in the bathroom, or maybe in the barn with Pearl and Amethyst! Oh! Gems don't sleep…!"

Peridot sighed, listening to the hybrid gush about how excited she was. She knew she had more to tell about Connie's powers, but the girl hadn't asked, and that was their only promise, besides, the promise Peridot made with the girl's mother went deeper.

Jasper smiled. "Okay, okay, calm down. If it'll make you happy, kid, she can stay unbubbled. Just know that there's only so much we can do to help her."

* * *

Connie soon had Centipeedle sitting on the couch and had the bag of veggies beside her.

"Sorry I couldn't heal you completely, Centipeedle." Connie sighed. She then glanced up in thought, looking at Centi's green hue. "Your name isn't really Centipeedle, I just remembered, it's a gem name. Are you a… emerald?"

Centi gave a confused look, she didn't understand at all.

"Oh, nevermind… There's just so many questions I want to ask you… I can't believe you can't remember me, you saved me so many times, all I did for you was hurt you...I didn't mean to..." She trailed off and picked up the plastic baggie of veggies.

Centi perked up and her mouth drooled acid when she saw Connie open the bag. Those little things in there, what were they called? They were good! Really good! The other creature knew what they were, but Centi wanted to figure it out on her own.

"I like veggies-" Connie was interrupted when Centi tried to sing along with her own screechy tune.

Veggies! That's what they were! That thing gave her them as a treat! But what was the thing called again?

Connie gasped in surprise. "Oh! You remember the song!" She giggled and kept singing, Centi chorusing along with joy. She held out a baby carrot and Centi grabbed it, munching it down.

"Your memories are still in there, I just have to draw them out!" Connie cried with excitement. She then gasped and ran over to get a paper and pencil.

"This is called paper, Centi. Gems write on their screens I know, but this has to make due, I suppose." Connie smiled, placing the supplies down as Centi watched in confusion.

Connie neatly wrote out her name, and showed it to Centipeedle. "This is my name, Con-nie, you want to try?"

Centi nodded eagerly. Connie! Connie was her friend! That's right! The gem scribbled many symbols down, then showed it to Connie.

Connie frowned. "I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I don't understand… maybe you can't remember how to write? I can teach you-"

Centi shook her head, and pointed to the symbols again.

Connie squinted her eyes. "... I really don't get it… Maybe we can draw instead?"

Connie took out a crisp new sheet and drew herself, it wasn't too bad looking either, better than a stick figure.

Centi suddenly took the paper, and started drawing.

"What are you adding on?" Connie smiled.

Her friend showed her.

Centi had added herself, holding hands with the doodle Connie.

Connie beamed. "You remember we're friends!"

Centi made a sound that actually sounded like "Yeah!"

"Do you remember how you were corrupted? Who did it and why?" Connie had been wondering that question ever since she learned the monsters used to be gems.

Centipeedle thought for a moment, then gasped and took the paper, scribbling down a drawing.

She soon turned it back.

It was a doodle of Centipeedle, in some kind of ship.

"That's how you got to Earth, isn't it? I wonder what you were coming here for..." Connie muttered.

Centi wasn't listening, she'd already begun drawing more.

Connie tilted her head. "What are you drawing on?"

The gem turned it back and Connie saw lots of other stick gems that looked just like Centipeedle, and the drawing Centi was smiling.

"Oh! Those gems must be your crew! Centi, were you the captain of that ship?"

Centi gave a squawk in response, it sounded full of pride.

"Wow, I'm communicating to a captain of a war vessel!" Connie gasped in surprise. "You weren't on the Crystal Temps' side, were you? You were loyal to a Diamond I assume?" She made the Diamond symbol.

Centi nodded, and made the Diamond salute at her.

Connie then blushed in surprise. "Oh, no Centi, I wasn't your Diamond! Even if I have her gem. You probably wanted this gem brought to your real Diamond, right?"

Centi looked confused again. But she was a Diamond, diamonds get the salute, don't they? They do, they do.

Connie wondered if in her corruption she could remember that Yellow Diamond was who she was against.

Centi drew more.

"Okay, that's you, saulting your commander, she gave you a order to do something." Connie whispered, mostly to herself.

Centi then drew her team, and then her ship around them. Even more little ships were around that.

"And so, you and your team in your ship, oh, with a fleet of ships, headed down to the planet Earth…"

Injectors and Kindergartens were soon drawn in as well.

"You started to colonize the planet, all was going well…"

The gems soon were running, afraid of something… Explosions were around them, they were all so terrified.

"The Gem War broke out." Connie whispered with a solomness, it was no surprise.

Centi suddenly started crossing groups of gems out, her eye narrowing in anger. So many warriors, and workers, all gone except for her and her team.

"Y-You stayed to fight." Connie choked, tears coming in her eyes, knowing poor Centipeedle could never have been able to escape.

Centi tore out the section with her and her team, and then ripped that as well so only she remained.

"You got separated, but you were still fighting."

A afraid Centi ran and ran. She was so scared.

"Then, new orders came from your commander, s-she told you to flee."

Centipeedle followed her fellow gems, what was happening?! The gems soon all tried to leave in their vessels, her ship was gone!

"Everyone ran, but you don't know why, you can't find your crew, or your ship! You stopped… and heard something… a-a song? And then.."

Suddenly, the pencil snapped.

"Centi?"

Connie looked up to see she wasn't the only one crying.

Centi was soon sobbing.

"W-Who did this to you?" Connie whispered.

Centipeedle picked up another pencil and slowly drew two diamonds…

"The Diamonds." Connie choked.

Suddenly, Centi hacked up acid.

"Ah! Centi! Oh my gosh, are you okay?!" Connie cried in fear, running to her friend who fell to the ground.

Suddenly, Centipeedle started to glow, and her arm reverted back to its corrupted state.

"No! I-It should last longer, why can't it last longer?!" Connie yelled, trying to apply her spit, it was glitching out and not working. "How do I stop this?!"

Centi grabbed the picture of the Diamond Authority symbol and pointed fiercely.

"The Diamonds?! B-But how?! I can't just go to them! They know what my mothe-"

Centi was angry now and upset, crying. Why didn't she get it?! Why couldn't she save her?! She just wanted her crew back! She ran to the warp pad, and started pounding her fists on it.

Connie grabbed all Centi's drawings, frantically looking through them. "Where do you want to go? The battlefield? Your ship?"

Centi gave a sound that Connie assumed was a desperate yes.

The corrupted gem pounded her fists again.

Connie leapt onto the warp pad and offer Centi her hand with a weak smile. "Don't worry, I'll get you there."

They then warped over to a gem ship which Connie had encountered only once before. She prayed this was the right one.

Centipeedle wasted no time. She ran towards the ship.

"Centi! Wait!" Connie yelled, running after her.

Centipeedle seemed to call for Connie, as if she needed her to hurry. She then screeched in pain and gripped her head, tears and acid were streaming down her face.

Connie caught up just in time to see Centi revert nearly all the way back to her corrupted form. The girl gave a gasp. "Oh no!"

The hybrid ran to her now monster-looking friend, bending down. "Your ship! We have to find it, okay?"

Centi got it and made it to the ship's door, which was covered in dying ivy vines. The gem ripped them away with her hands and mouth, clawing to get in before she was lost again in corruption.

Connie ran up, ripping vines with her tiny arms as well. She then saw a hand switch, just like the multiple others she had seen before it.

Centipeedle desperately tried to touch it with her one human-like hand that was left, but it then went back to pinchers. She gave a cry, hitting the switch, but it didn't work!

Connie placed her own hand on it and the panel went yellow, recognizing that she was a gem, and not just any gem either, a Diamond.

The two went inside.

It was a hollow room with no furniture, except the ivy on the walls. Connie glanced up at the ceiling to see 2 more Centipeedles.

"Your crew!" Connie smiled as Centi finally scuttled up the wall to reunite.

After a few minutes of watching and waving up to Centipeedle and her friends, a voice came behind her.

"You delivered her home, great job!"

Connie gave a cry in surprise and whipped around to see Lapis and the other Temps smiling with pride.

"I wish I could help her more." Connie whispered. "You guys were right, I couldn't save her."

They walked up and Jasper bent down and smirked. "Kid, look at what you did."

Connie turned to see the Centipeedles were nuzzling each other in there reunion and smiled weakly.

"You reunited her with her team, and she totally owes you one, you did save her from being all alone." Jasper said as Connie turned back. "These guys have been waiting for a long time to see her again, you know. They didn't want to leave without her."

Connie smiled up at her friend. She then was confused when she though of the previous statement and turned back to Jasper. "How did you know about her team? And how'd you know we'd even be here?"

"Oh, well we found these on the table and assumed that you went to go find her ship, we had to search a couple though, I can't see the future so it was hard to find the exact ship you were on. That's why it took us a few minutes." Jasper said, showing the papers.

Connie squinted at the papers. "Why didn't you see the right ship in the drawings?"

"Oh, we didn't look at the drawings, we looked at her writing." Jasper replied, showing Connie what she had assumed were just messed up squiggles before. "We didn't know if Centipeedle would go nuts on you when she turned back into her old form."

Connie stared at the writing and Peridot laughed. "Your friend's writing isn't even half as bad as Jasper's!"

Jasper barred her teeth. "I have big hands."

"Incredible, a whole language I didn't even know about!" Connie whispered, taking the papers back. Centipeedle then affectionately nuzzled her in her own sort of hug. Connie laughed. "You're so happy here!"

The Temps soon looked upon Connie, how looked ready to beg.

"They're free to stay here, you don't even need to ask." Jasper smirked.

Connie beamed.

They soon were walking back to the warp pad, and Connie flipped through the drawings and writings. "Peridot, can you teach me how to write gem like you guys? I've always wanted to learn a new language."

"You are very intelligent, Connie, I'm certain you will learn fast. Where would you like to start?" Peridot asked.

"Well, I'd like to learn something simple first…" Connie whispered, looking at the final drawing of the two diamonds. "I want to know how to say… I'm so sorry."


	93. Rocky Relationship

Connie had already packed all the things she needed for a day of fun in the sun. Sunscreen, books, plenty of water to keep her hydrated, and snacks. She came out in her two piece blue swimsuit, her long hair put up in a ponytail, and twirled. "How do I look?"

Amethyst glanced up from a magazine and frowned. "Uh, fine?"

Connie was surprised. "Is something wrong?"

"I dunno, it's just… more a bit revealing than what you usually wear, but I'm not judging." Amethyst shrugged, turning back to her article.

Connie blushed, and quickly put on her yellow cover up dress. "Oh! Er, no! I forgot that you've never seen a swimsuit! This isn't for regular town wear, dad and I are going to the beach! And I wear this over it if I'm in town."

Suddenly, the door opened, and Doug came in with only a towel, and his trunks and shorts. "Ready for this beach day, you two?"

Amethyst glanced up in surprise, looking at him. "Um, who are you and why did you just come into the house? More importantly, I'm not going on the beach."

"Amethyst, this is my dad, Doug." Connie said, stepping to him.

He offered a shake and Amethyst gently punched it. "Are we training or something?"

Doug nervously pulled his hand away. "Er, no. You may not remember me, but I was in that car that you threw when you were a wrestler and took away the ocean?"

"Huh. I do vaguely remember a car, and Connie being really upset I threw it..." Amethyst said softly, mostly to herself. "Welp, good to see you again, I guess."

"You too." Doug smiled, unsure what else to do. He glanced at Connie, who shrugged, and then tilted her head to the door, signaling that she'd handle this. "Well, I'll see you two down there!"

Amethyst rolled her eyes. "Whatever you think, bud."

"Please come with us!" Connie begged. "I know why you don't want to go!"

"Uh huh. And why's that?" Amethyst murmured softly, pretending like she didn't want to spend time with Connie. She did, just not on the beach.

"You don't want to because that's where you and Garnet fused and we're stuck as Sugilite." Connie answered sure of herself. "Come on, you'd love the beach, it'd be so much fun for you, I know it! Besides, you haven't been talking to me, or Pearl, or really anyone since those Jaspers mentioned Garnet. Jasper forced you to talk to her-"

"And there was nothing to tell." The other gem grunted. Connie had still noticed that Amethyst's eyes widened for a split second at the mention of Garnet, and she peeked out the window at the beach. She then gave a small chuckle. "I told you many times, Sugilite isn't some big ol' weight on this gem. Kid, it's just me, I don't need your pity."

"It's not pity!" The hybrid insisted. "Come on! For me?"

Amethyst frowned, and glared at Connie.

The girl looked heartbroken, and gave a huff. "I guess we can't be summer friends anymore!"

"Wait, what?! No! That's not true!" Amethyst protested, immediately getting up. "What's your problem?"

"I mean, summer friends hang out at the beach all the time… I thought you'd be up for the challenge…"

* * *

Connie only had to wait a single second after her foot touched the sand before Amethyst barred into her.

Connie laughed as Amethyst pretended to wrestle her. "Fine! You got me down here, now what do you want?"

The girl got up, then brushed herself off and pointed to the ocean. "I want to swim!"

"Then let's do it!" Amethyst yelled, putting Connie on her shoulders and running to the ocean.

The gems were soon in a splash fight, Amethyst clearly was winning while Doug watched them with a content smile on his face.

The two friends were glad to be in each other's company, and did all sorts of things. Connie taught Amethyst how to blow bubble in the water, which the gem thought was incredible. In return, Amethyst taught Connie how to catch a fish with her teeth after shapeshifting into a wolf. The girl tried to shapeshift, but of course it didn't work.

* * *

Amethyst still didn't like to be on the beach, however. She hated the memories that it brought back.

The girls still had lots of fun, splashing each other, and playing all sorts of games.

Doug watched them as he himself relaxed laid out on a towel.

But soon enough, the sun was starting to set.

"J-Jee, time sure flies when you're having fun!" Connie shivered in the cold water. They hadn't gotten out all day. Of course, Amethyst hadn't noticed, seeing as she was made of light, therefore couldn't feel temperature that well.

"Yeah, that was pretty fun." Amethyst smiled.

"Maybe we should… hang out on the beach?"

Amethyst immediately stopped smiling. "I told you, I don't want to."

"But Amethyst, please? I need a break." Connie moaned.

Amethyst turned away in anger. "Then just get out and leave me!"

"No! I brought you out here to overcome your fear of the beach!" Connie protested.

"I'm not scared of a beach, Connie!" Amethyst growled, getting even angrier.

"Nothing bad's going to happen, I promise! And if something does, I'll protect you-"

"I don't need protection!"

"Just trust me!!" Connie yelled in anger.

"Do you honestly think I can even trust any of my friends again?! How can I trust anyone?!" Amethyst suddenly shouted, her voice ringing out as she whipped around.

Connie looked shocked, but Amethyst didn't stop, she was angry.

"You say it's safe, but I've heard it a million times! Garnet said she was going to keep me safe, she said she'd always protect me from all those gems who wanted me gone, because we were a team, we were friends. And then I'm stuck under the sand, for who knows how long, fighting that...that… liar! She didn't stop herself, she didn't even try to reason-!" Amethyst was sweating in fury now, and glanced up with upset eyes at Connie, who couldn't say anything at all. The older gem sniffed. "She made me feel worthless, like I'd be nothing without her. Heh…She's a liar, isn't she….?"

"Y-Yeah." Connie said weakly. "But… if we just…" The girl trailed off. What was she supposed to say? If we just pretend it didn't happen, it'd be fine? Or a even worse solution, at least for Amethyst wishes, we talk about our feelings?

They then were both silent besides the tiny splashing of water.

"I miss her." Amethyst admitted.

Connie's eyes widened in surprise. "Wait, what? But that's- That's crazy! Why-?"

"Don't even ask me why! It's dumb!" Amethyst growled, mostly angry at herself.

"Amethyst, that isn't dumb, it's something we need to talk abo-!" Connie cried, her fists pounding into the water.

"I don't want to!" The gem yelled back, they were now both determined to get the opposite thing, practically glaring at each other. "Just… leave me alone, okay? Before I start wrecking stuff in anger."

Connie's glare softened to one of worry. "I didn't mean to upset you, I just wanted a fun day at the beach…"

"Just go home, Connie, I'll be up soon." Amethyst whispered sharply.

The girl slowly walked out of the water, looking back at Amethyst one last time before running off to the house.

Doug looked after her, and got up to follow, but Connie held out a hand as if to say, "Please, not now."

Amethyst gave a sigh, and walked out too, and slumped down on the sand. She shuddered slightly, she hated the beach. No matter how hard Connie could try, she'd never like the beach, nothing could keep her on that beach any longer, or so she thought. The gem rose to her feet when she suddenly heard Connie yelling her name, Amethyst had never heard her friend so desperate and frightened, it scared her.

"Connie!" Doug gasped. He started to run, but Amethyst sped past him.

The gem immediately started to run down the beach, not caring that the sand was getting in her face or her hair, not caring that she still felt like she was sinking and would be trapped under for good, all she cared about at the moment was her friend who needed her.

"Connie! Where are you?!" Amethyst yelled, she was wondering if there had been so much fog before, she could barely see in front of her. "CONNIE!"

"Amethyst!" The girl yelled again, she was closer!

Amethyst kept following the voice, she was getting closer... Suddenly, Connie's voice abruptly stopped mid call, there was a audible sound of breath being knocked out of her. "Connie?! Why'd you…" The gem then saw a small silhouette collapsed on the sand in the fading sunlight. It was her!

Amethyst slid to a stop, and quickly picked Connie up. "Oh no, no, no, no… Connie, wake up!"

"It took you long enough…"

Amethyst's eyes widened in fear and shock, her heart nearly stopped and her body went cold. That voice…

The gem looked up to see the towering shadow over her. "G-Garnet!"

"Hello, Amethyst." The fusion whispered coldly with a smug smile on her face.

"I should've known you'd be after Connie!" Amethyst growled, standing up, trying not to let her voice shake. "News flash, you're not laying a hand on her!"

"I've forgotten how dull you runts are. I didn't come for that other freak, I came for you." Garnet chuckled, circling the two gems.

Amethyst formed her whip, guarding the unconscious girl. "Don't call her that! You-!"

"Mistakes like you were made to serve me! Ha, you're so pathetic even the so called terrifying Yellow Diamond took mercy on you!" Garnet hissed coldly, and then snatched up Connie before Amethyst could even react. Garnet held the girl by her wrist, mocking what was once a fearless leader and now merely a small girl. "… I honestly don't know why your Diamond even kept you alive, you would be dead if Rose hadn't stepped in."

"Shut up." Amethyst growled. "A-And put Connie down! She had nothing to do with what's between us!"

Garnet released the girl. "That's fair. I only grabbed her so she'd call for you like the weakling she is… There's no power that she or any other gem can inflict that will stop me from hunting you down. I want you to fuse with me again."

"Are you kidding?!" Amethyst growled. "Never! I'll never fuse with you again!"

"Do you really think any of these other gems care about you?" Garnet growled, glaring down at the small gem. "Tell me, have any of them besides Yellow Diamond accepted you?"

"I-"

"Even your fellow quartz still thinks you're hiding something." Garnet smirked. "She's been interrogating you, am I right?"

Amethyst looked away in shame.

"Of course I am." Garnet whispered. "Now then, do you want to do this the easy way, or the hard way? There are many other paths between that, but I suggest you easily give yourself back up to me, and we'll finally help your Diamond finish colonizing this planet with Yellow Diamond and her servent shattered. It's the most probable future."

"No-" Amethyst was suddenly lifted up by her neck, and slammed to the rock wall, choking.

"Heh, I knew you'd say that too… And now, you'll give up hope, because you know a mistake like you never stood a chance against me."

"Put her down!"

Garnet released Amethyst at once, flipping around to see the night was illuminated with yellow light from Connie's hands, her hair was also flowing around her.

"Yellow Diamond… I foresaw you maybe coming into play… However, you won't last long. After I poof you and fuse with Amethyst, do you know what I'll do? I'll smash that little shack that you reside in, and I'll make Jasper watch as I shatter you right in front of her eyes."

"Y-You're a manic!" Connie cried, her glow was fading in fear.

Garnet shrugged. "Maybe, but I prefer being called a conversation, and every part is saying to shatter you!" The gem lunged towards Connie, her gauntlet about to hit dead center on both Connie's gem and near human heart, when suddenly, she was stopped.

Amethyst was pulling her back with her whip around Garnett's waist, tears slipping down her face. "You are going to regret trying to shatter my friend!!"

The gem gave a yell, and slammed the fusion into the rock wall. "That's for making me feel like a dummy!" The gem rolled up and punched her. "And that's for knocking out Connie!"

Connie watched in surprise as Amethyst kept punching hard.

"This is for treating Pearl like she's nothing! And this is for obeying Rose and her orders to shatter the Temps! And this! This is for all the times I thought you cared about me, that were all FAKE!" The gem screamed, and angrily punched at Garnet, but she only hit the rock wall, Garnet had leapt away from her. Amethyst long ponytail blew in the wind, and she glared up at the darkness. "COWARD!"

Her yell echoed around the beach...

The gem took a breath, and turned to her friend. "C-Connie…"

"Yeah?" The girl was suddenly hugged so tightly, the air came out of her.

"Thanks…"

"C-Connie! I'm sorry, I-I couldn't… keep up! I forgot how fast you could walk, and don't get me started on running!" Doug panted, wiping sweat off his brow. The man had just arrived. He looked up to see them embracing, and Amethyst holding the girl like she was afraid to let her go again.

Connie hugged Amethyst tight back, and stared into the darkness, wondering if Garnet was still watching her…

 **Sorry it has been so long! So much stuff to do, and I was having trouble reaching my usual word count on this chapter!**

 **SPOILERS!!**

 **After seeing the Diamond Days trailer, I am so excited and hyped to find out more about both the diamonds and White Pearl (and why Steven was throwing up Rose's hair, that was a good ol' dose of gross nightmare fuel)**


	94. Doug The Babysitter

Connie and Doug were sitting in his car at night outside the mayor's home, a well kept and tidy little home, waiting.

"This is so cool…" Connie squealed. "I'm on a actual stakeout, I can't believe it! I'm not even official sanctioned security personnel!"

"I'm sure it's fine, Connie. You save people all the time, and now, you'll help me do the same. The mayor said that a strange shadow had been lurking around his house around 11. Tonight, we stop them!" Doug beamed. "Man, even though I've worked on security for all your life, I've never taken you along."

Connie gasped. "You've been here longer than I've been alive? Incredible! How did you get this job?"

"Funny, it started with you, er, well, your mother."

"My mother? Oh! I knew this would happen!" Connie gushed.

Doug laughed at the girl's glee. "What do you-"

Connie pulled out Doug favorite guitar from the back seat and gave it to him. "Play it for me? Please?"

Doug took it, even though he was suprised. "How'd this get in here? Did you bring this with us?"

Connie hid her smile. "Maybe?"

Doug rolled his eyes with a smile and leaned back his chair, giving the guitar enough room. "Promise you'll be on the lookout?"

"Of course!" Connie cried, saluting him.

Doug started to play, and the story began….

* * *

"You, look at everything you are,"

Yellow Diamond and the young Doug Universe were at Funland, where they were competing at a shooting game. Doug kept missing meanwhile the Diamond hit all the targets dead on the center, with great determination. Her lover stared in awe at her, she blushed with a frown and a arched eyebrow back, not knowing why he always looked at her like that.

"Look at everything you do. It's incredible. As incredible as you."

"And me. I guess I'm content to be. On the arm of someone who. Is as incredible as you."

Another day, Doug waited for the Temps to come back, much like his own daughter would in the future, sitting by it, reading a book about a man who fell in love with a alien. It was very similar to his situation. Just then, the Temps warped in, making him drop his book and looked up to see Yellow smirking down at him, Peridot glared daggers while Lapis shyly waved. He waved back.

"And it's a full-time job admiring. All the ways that you're inspiring."

Yellow Diamond soon read the same book that Doug had been so infixed with, she threw it at a wall, clearly bored by it. Doug looked suprised and Yellow rolled her eyes. He soon was playing video games with her, which despite insisting they were a waste of time, Yellow still loved to do for her anger issues. Her favorite was Legend of Zelda.

"If I had my way. I'd do it all day. That's why it's really, really hard to say… I think I need a little cha-a-ange."

Doug a few weeks later realized his water had been turned off in his shabby apprtment and sighed.

"I think I need a little cha-a-ange."

Doug later lay on the beach, asleep, covered in sunblock. Yellow lay beside him, and kept poking his cheek to wake him up and entertain her. She didn't see he had been desperately reading job applications after needing so much money and not getting enough from his current job.

"Oh. I always did believe. That love is all you need. To be a happy man."

Yellow and Doug were having dinner, both eating salads before pizza. Yellow picked at hers with a look of much dislike while Doug handed her the pepper. She beamed, and dumped the whole thing on top. Doug dropped his fork, knowing Yellow loved spicy food, but he didn't know she'd do that! Yellow gave a tiny smile.

"Oh. That may have been naive, I guess I need to eat. That wasn't in the plan."

Doug snuck some bits of fries from a nearby trashcan, and ate them, he was too hungry to care.

"And it's a full-time job admiring. All the ways that you're inspiring. If I had my way. I'd do it all day. The only problem is it doesn't pay."

The next day, he was saying goodbye to the Temps, who were about to go on a mission.

Lapis waved goodbye, Peridot hissed at him trying to wave at her, and Jasper ruffled his hair. Yellow lightly kissed him goodbye.

"I think I need a little cha-a-ange. I think I need a little cha-a-ange. I think I need a little cha-a-a-a-a-a-ange…" Doug finished his song and glanced up from his guitar, truly preforming it on the boardwalk, really needing change as in a solid currency. A bystander left him a dollar and then walked away.

Doug peeked in and sighed at the dollar and a few bottlecaps. "Well… at least I can get a hotdog…"

* * *

A few minutes later, he was standing outside Vidalia's door. He put his hands in his pockets, and was quite embarrassed and ashamed that he had to be there.

The young woman opened the door, blowing a bubble with her gum before it popped.

"Vidalia, I hate to ask, but-"

"You helped me get this place after he left me, Universe, so," Vidalia rolled her eyes. "come on in."

* * *

Later, Vidalia was feeding her baby son, Sour Cream some food. He sat in his high chair, looking expectantly. "Ready to eat? You're gonna love these mashed-up carrots!"

She stood and he opened his mouth, but turned away from the spoon once it came with a cute smile.

"Oh, you're too cool for mashed-up carrots?" Vidalia laughed, turning the spoon away. Her baby was just like her.

The baby said only one word, and despite being young, his voice was low. "Meh."

Doug walked in and ruffled the baby's hair, making the boy giggle. The man then sat across from Vidalia. "You've really made a life here, Vidalia."

"Yeah," Vidalia shrugged. "so why are you here again?"

"I haven't been able to find a new job, none of them could pay enough in enough time so that I could stay in my appartment, I tried… but it wasn't good enough. I got kicked out." Doug sighed.

Vidalia glanced up from the baby food. "Huh. Well, sorry about that. I'm sure you'll find a job somewhere, Doug. But I thought you were into making music?"

Doug smiled. "I still am, but I soon realized after I left Marty, I had to grow up and get real, music just isn't a career that is steady enough."

The woman gave a tiny smirk and nodded, then went back to feeding the baby food. "So, how's that goddess girlfriend that you worship? Can't she cook?"

"Oh, no. She eats, when I want to, but she can't cook." Doug laughed. He then noticed Sour Cream and grinned. "How's baby life?"

"How's it look?" Videla grunted, carrot mush hitting her face after Sour Cream threw it at her. She wiped it away.

Doug held back his snort of laughter, and went to try feed the baby. However, Sour Cream just threw carrot mush onto his clean white shirt.

* * *

The two friends were soon in Vidalia's laundry room, putting thier dirty shirts in, the woman now in a light blue shirt with a goofy face on it. Doug put on a turquoise t-shirt from his very tiny suitcase with his belongs in it and then noticed Vidalia.

"Um, what an interesting choice of shirt, Vidalia…" Doug chuckled.

The woman rolled her eyes. "This is my uniform for the T-shirt shop, I've got a job there now."

"I never exspected you to be into selling shirts."

"Welp, we all have to grow up sometime." Vidalia shrugged.

The home phone just above the washer suddenly rang and Vidalia picked it up. "Hello?... Wait, what do you mean you can't come?"

Doug glanced up at her desprate tone of voice. Was everything okay?

"Death in the family?" Videla gave groan suddenly after that. "A hamster doesn't count! You can't do this to me! Look, I -- I really need-! Hello? Hello?!" She have a growl, slamming the phone on the receiver. "Lousy twelve-year old!"

"What happened?" Doug asked hesitantly, not knowing if he'd regret to ask.

Videla sighed. "Listen, Doug, my babysitter canceled. I need you to watch Sour Cream for me while I'm at work. Can you do it?"

"Me?! Vidalia! I can't be in charge of another human being! I need to put in some research first!"

"I know it's sudden, but I need you to do it!" Vidlea begged.

* * *

Doug was soon cradling the baby in his arms. If he had a child, he'd teach the babysitter everything, absolutely everything before letting them take care of it. He kept true to that.

"Okay, don't forget, diaper bag's over there, snacks are over there. Emergency number's on the fridge." Vidalia said quickly, she then leaned in very close to Doug. "I may think you're a alright guy, but if anything bad happens to my kid, you better pray your space goddess' magic can bring people back from the dead, because I will destroy you."

Doug gave a nervous laugh. "Alright… good to know…."

Videla then walked off to work, Doug calling out goodbye.

The man sighed, then glanced at the baby. "Now, Sour Cream, shall we have some fun?"

Sour Cream gave a, "Meh." in response.

"You really have quite a deep voice there, little buddy." Doug laughed, ruffling the kid's hair.

* * *

Soon enough, they were on the beach under a umbrella. The two sat on a towel

"Sour Cream, sunscreen is very important! It protects you from the rays of the sun. However, the sun give vitamin D as well, so I wouldn't say shy away from it-"

"Doug, who are you talking away to?" A familer voice asked.

He turned and saw Yellow Diamond who bent down to look at the baby. She frowned. "Oh. You're talking to your less intelligent kind."

"He's a baby, this is Sour Cream." Doug exclaimed. He noticed Yellow's sneer. "What's wrong?"

"I do respect human kind, but I still don't understand why they make it so small, why not let them come out useful and ready to work?" Yellow asked. "It's a waste of good resources and time, isn't it?"

"No, it's not. He'll grow up and one day be able to walk and talk and run and jump, just like me and you! Besides, it's a wonderful experience to raise a child, it brings out the best in people, so I've heard."

The Diamond looked at Sour Cream again, and thought back of her own home. "... I see. Humans are very different from gems…. Humans change, they don't obey a single master, not the way gems do… Gems can't change, not at all. They were made for one purpose, and one alone. To serve a Diamond. And even I had to somewhat obey…" She quieted, and turned her head away. She didn't want to finish the sentence. She didn't want Doug's thoughts of her to be tarnished, she didn't want to talk about being nervous about another gem. "Nevermind. Where did you find this child?"

"Vidalia asked me to babysit." Doug answered.

Yellow frowned quickly. "Who is Vidalia?"

"Oh, Yellow, she's just my friend! I think you'd like her." Doug smiled.

His lover merely shrugged. "I don't know if she's worth my time yet. Perhaps I'll have one of the Temps evaluate her for me."

Sour Cream suddenly tugged on Doug's shirt.

"Oh, is there something you need, Sour Cream?" He asked.

The baby pointed to the water, then looked back at Doug.

"You want to go in the water? Of course!" Doug beamed. He picked Sour Cream up and then gasped. "Neither one of us are in our swiming trunks!"

"And should that be concerning me?" Yellow asked with a bored exsprisson. "Just go with your normal clothes."

"Yellow, we could get in the cold water and get colds!"

"But it's summer." Yellow replied bluntly.

Doug sighed. "I'd just feel a lot better if I got them."

"Fine." The Diamond muttered. "Leave the child here, I'll watch it."

"Thanks a million, Yellow!" Doug called out, and she realized he was already running to get the trunks. "Be back in a jiffy!"

* * *

Soon enough, Doug was indeed back, however, Yellow and Sour Cream were gone.

"Oh no! Where's the baby?!" Doug cried, frantically looking back and forth. "I knew this would happen! Vidalia's going to kill me!"

* * *

"Yellow! Yellow, where are you?!" Doug called out, running through the town. "Yellow!" He soon was at Funland, yelling out for them, when he suddenly saw a bright yellow helmet over by the ferris wheel and sighed in relief. "Yellow!"

The Diamond turned from looking up at the wheel and looked at him with confusion. "Why were you yelling for me? Did you trip and hurt yourself again? You know I let things like that heal on their own."

"Where's Sour Cream?" Doug gasped. "I thought you said you'd watch him!"

"Why are you yelling?" Yellow growled, and then pointed up to a near the top carriage of the wheel. "I did watch him, he climbed up there."

"What?! Oh no!" Doug moaned.

"It was suprising, for something so small, it is very quick and agile… Do you have any jobs that require speed and agility? He might do alright in that field." Yellow mused, then noticed Doug was shaking hard. "What's the matter with you? If you want to get him so badly, go get him."

"I-I hate heights…" Doug whispered softly. "If I just call the police, I'm sure they can safely get him down, I'll just fall and hurt us both."

Yellow rolled her eyes. "You are as good as any of those police people, you just have to focus on the child and that you want to get it down, and not falling."

Doug looked at her, gulped, and then nodded. "Thank you, Yellow." He then bolted to the Ferris wheel and started to climb. He slipped and gasped in fear, hanging from a rung with one sweaty hand. He then looked at Sour Cream, knowing he'd never forgive himself if the boy got even a little bit hurt. He grasped the rung tight and pulled himself up.

Sour Cream had only his usual chill exspression, but Doug picked him up and hugged him.

"I'm so glad you're okay, little guy… I don't-" Suddenly, The ferris wheel unexpectedly turned and Doug slipped, and the two of them were falling! Doug was yelling in horror, holding Sour Cream close.

But impact never came. They were only falling for about a second anyway, barely enough time to react. Doug looked up to see the gianromus form of Yellow Diamond, her true size. He always forgot she could do that.

"Yellow! Why didn't you shapeshift taller in the first place and save him?!" Doug cried.

Yellow put him down on the ground and then squated down to raise a eyebrow. "Well, you didn't ask me, of course. And beside, you did what you set out to do and proved you could." The gem than shapeshifted back to her normal size.

Doug cradled Sour Cream and then smiled at Yellow. "Want to hold him? I think you'd like it."

Yellow looked suprised and looked quizily, did he just ask her? The most anger prone and least likely to like children to hold a baby? How thoughtful. "Fine, but only for a few moments, and then it's going straight back."

Doug showed her how to hold the baby, support his head and bottom, then give him to her.

She looked down at the baby. This was… nice. The Diamond hoped this wouldn't be her only time holding one. At the time, she had no idea that she'd a few months be angry that she could never see or hold her own...

* * *

Later that night, Doug had returned Sour Cream and packed his suitcase. He was saying his goodbyes to the mother and son.

"You sure you're going to be okay out there, Doug?" Videla asked, trying not to sound too concerned.

"I'm sure. They always had a open position for me, and now I know I'm brave enough to do it. I want to protect Beach City, just like Yellow and the Temps do." Doug smiled.

"How are you going to pay for classes?" Videla asked, tickling her baby.

Doug gave a small chuckle. "They sorta already know me, so they're letting me learn for free."

"You going to exsplain that?" The woman asked.

"Sometime, but right now the chief's exspecting me. Thank you for all the hospitality and company, Vidalia." The man then turned and walked to the police station, humming a little tune.

* * *

The next week, he was on his first official stakeout. In the dark car, he sang softly to himself out of boredom. "I know I'm not that tall, I know I'm not that smart, but let me drive my car into this lot, let me drive my car into this lot…"

* * *

"And you've been a cop ever since." Connie finished.

"Yes." Doug smiled. "I grew up a little more that day."

Suddenly, a noise came from the back of the house and they both tensed.

The two soon came out with flashlights, and Connie saw two tall and shadowy figures sneaking up to the house.

"Freeze!" Doug yelled, shining the flashlight on the figures.

It was Jenny Pizza and Sour Cream. They had put their hands up.

"Jenny, Sour Cream! Why are you guys slinking around?" Connie asked.

"Uh, getting Buck, of course, did his dad actually notice us last night? We do this, like, all the time." Jenny smirked.

"Oh, well you kids better inform your parents about what you're doing, it really frightened the mayor." Doug explained. He then nodded to Sour Cream. "And you, tell your mother I said hello."

Connie and Doug then went back into the car and drove off homeward.

The teens watched for a moment before turning back to talk to each other.

"You gonna tell your mom?" Jenny asked.

Sour Cream shrugged, saying his trademark, "Meh."


	95. Gem Hunt

Connie, Steven, and Peridot warped into the Great North, a frigid cold place, but full of wonder all the same, for this was a very special mission.

"And here we are, the Great North!" Peridot announced. "Stunning, isn't it!"

"Very!" Connie breathed, sucking in cold air. She wore her yellow winter trench coat and white woolen hat along with white mittens and boots. Her not-so-normal backpack strapped on her back, loaded with supplies. The girl looked around in amazement. "It's even more beautiful than you described!"

"Picture time!" Steven suddenly cried, taking out his phone. He wore his red puffy jacket and pale purple mittens and earmuffs, along with his signature cheeseburger backpack.

He put his arm around Connie and Peri and brought them into frame for the selfie. "Smile!"

They did so. He snapped it.

"Okay, now let's do one where we're looking for a monster!"

Connie put her hand over her eyes as if shielding them from the sun while Steven looked intrigued to his left. Peridot just awkwardly stood there, not sure how to pose.

The phone gave a little snap again.

"Okay, now-!"

Peridot snatched the phone away. "Steven, please, no more pictures, we must get started right away."

"Oh, yeah, sorry!" Steven chuckled, taking his phone back. "It's my first mission, and I want to remember every bit of it! Let's go, team!" The boy started marching off in the snow, Peridot and Connie watching with surprise.

"He's growing up so fast! His first mission!" Connie beamed with pride like she was a mother.

* * *

Soon, the trio were trudging through the deep snow.

"Steven, recap the details of this mission at once!" Peridot ordered.

"Yes madam!" Steven called. "Well, Jasper thinks that she saw a corrupted gem out here a few days ago, on the prowl. We're out here to find them, destabilize them, and put them safely in a bubble where they can't suffer anymore!"

"Correct!" Peridot replied with much pride in her voice. "Human bodies like your own and Connie particularly, cannot survive long in such temptress, so you must stay warm, do you understand?"

"Of course." Connie smiled. "I packed everything we'll need for this trip! Along with books!"

"And I brought snacks and board games, in case we get bored!" Steven added on.

"Excellent. I'm glad you brought something to amuse you, Steven." Peridot smiled.

"I'm already amused!" Steven laughed.

Suddenly, a low and menacing growl came from the trees and they all gasped in surprise.

"I'm no longer amused!" Steven creid.

Connie and Peridot took out their weapons and a bright orange corrupted monster cut through the trees at them.

Steven snapped a picture in his shock.

" Ready, Steven?" Connie called, wielding her yellow blade.

Steven threw his back pack aside to reveal his shield, and put it in front of himself. "Ready, Connie!"

To their surprise, another corrupt gem of the same kind revealed itself from behind the other. This one was apple green, it's gem wasn't visible at the moment.

"What?! Two of them?!" Peridot cried in shock.

Connie needed no prompt to summon her bubble, shielding her allies. However, the monsters seemed to not care about them, they merely leapt over them in a frantic dash. The two split up and went separate ways.

Connie looked after them with surprise. "They… didn't attack us… I think they were running away from something."

Peridot sighed, ignoring Connie in her disappointment. "This mission is ruined!"

"That's not true!" Steven protested. The two glanced back to see him smile. "Uh, what if we split up? And track both of them down? You can go after one, Peri, and Connie and I will go after the other! It's perfect!"

"Steven, that plan isn't logical at all." Peridot huffed, arms crossed. "Seeing as I, Peridot, trained you, I know for certain that you too are now magnifect at your blocking abilities, however, you've never been in a real fight."

"Yes, he has!" Connie piped up. "At his dad's car wash, he defeated those experimented on gems."

"True, But still-"

"Along with everything we need to survive, I packed walkie talkies." Connie continued, taking out two plain black walkie talkies. "You can take one, and Steven and I will take the other!"

"Er…"

"And I've got a can-do attitude!" Steven blurted out with a huge smile. "We can do it, you'll see!"

Peridot looked at him with disbelief, but at the same time knew what he said was true. "Hmph, fine! But you must contact me the moment you find that monster! Your skills may be great, but you could still get damaged immensely. Now, what are you looking for?"

"A monster!" The two said in unison.

"And what are you ordered to do once you find it?" The gem asked with a arched eyebrow.

"Contact you!" The children replied.

"And who is the best gem, perfect in every way?" Peridot said smugly.

Connie frowned with a groan, this wasn't a good time. "Peridot!"

"Correct! How well trained you are!" Peridot smirked, patting Connie on the head.

The kids giggled.

"Be safe, children!" Peridot called, and they walked their separate ways.

Connie was glancing around for her target when Steven stopped and kneeled in front of large, animal-like tracks. "Hey look! All we have to do is follow these tracks, and we'll find the gem!"

Connie bent down beside him. She then took up a handful of snow from a track and expertly tasted it. She narrowed her eyes in determination. "Yeah. These are fresh. We trail it until it stops to rest."

"Connie, you're so good at surviving in the wild!" Steven gushed.

"I have to be." Connie whispered with eagerness. "I'm ready for when this society collapses, when this world ends, caused by Homeworld or Rose Quartz, or most likely humans' own doing! I mean, peak oils, Steven! How do we handle terminal decline without alternate energy sources?!"

Steven looked at her in surprise.

Suddenly, their walkie-talkie made a staticky clunk noise and they heard Peridot on the other end. Connie took it out and listened. "Connie, Steven, have you eaten? I don't want your bodies to be out of energy when you find the monster, you'll be of no help that way."

"We'll eat, madam!" Steven replied happily. He then took out two Cookie Cats and beamed. "Snack time!"

Connie laughed, and took out protein bars from her own backpack. "Steven, we have to eat healthy!"

"But-!" Steven gasped, and Connie forced a protein bar in his mouth. He grumbled slightly before taking a bite.

* * *

A few minutes after finishing their snack, the two were off walking again.

"Good thing this snow is here, we'll find that gem in no time!" Steven cried, pumping up his fist.

Connie smiled. "I hope so."

"So, these gems are like bears? Right? Big ones! They don't _really_ want to hurt us, unless they're hungry?" Steven asked, walking along.

Connie shrugged a little. "Well, sorta. Gems don't need to eat, but they are like bears in a way, they have a fight or flight reflex, and survival instincts… They used to be gems that looked somewhat human like Jasper, Peri, and Lapis. They had thoughts, feelings… friends. But they were corrupted by something, and now are only husks of what they once were."

Steven was concerned, looking up from what looked like a burnt log, but it may have looked like it because it was wet, maybe. "That's sad."

"Yeah…" Connie whispered.

Steven didn't know what to do, Connie was upset, how could he make her feel better? He then gasped. "Race you down!" He yelled, and fell into the snow, rolling down the hill laughing.

Connie gave a start, but then smirked. "No fair!" She took a piece of wood nearby and snowboarded down. The walkie talkie suddenly came up again. The girl took it out.

"That's it! I can't find this clod at all! Now, don't mistake me for giving up, but I believe we should regroup at the temple!" Peridot's static voice rang out in the wind.

"What?! No!" Steven moaned. "We're doing great! We can do it all by ourselves!"

Peridot's voice paused for a moment, she was thinking about it. Soon, it came back, "Ok, but Steven, you must not get overconfident, remember,"

" _Keep my stance low, keep my guard higher!_ " Steven sang in joy, it was his way of remembering that part.

" _Do it for her!_ " Peridot sang along. " _Your pride is the key!_ "

Connie laughed, and rolled her eyes playfully. She put the comunicator back in her pocket and turned to Steven, he was stuck in a snow bank. "You need some help?"

"Yes please!" Steven blushed.

Connie heaved, and then they fell back into the snow, giggling.

The two brushed the snow off them, then noticed the tracks.

They were monster tracks, but scattered on top of them were seemingly human ones… The odd thing was, the tracks started out as one person's, but Connie could swear she could see another human like path leading off from it… She blinked and the path was gone, covered in snow. She then realized it had started to snow.

"Brr! We need some shelter!" Steven shivered. He blinked and saw Connie staring at where the tracks had been. "...Connie?"

Connie blinked and then turned to him. "Uh… yeah, shelter…"

* * *

They were soon huddled around a tiny flame inside a large crack of a tree.

Steven handed Connie a Cookie Cat with a tiny smile. "I know you said we need protein, but I feel pretty energized, and you look like you could use some cheering up."

Connie nodded in thanks, and unwrapped it. The girl then chewed thoughtfully. She swallowed and sighed.

"So… do you have any idea what those tracks were? Cause I'm stumped!" Steven chuckled nervously, taking out his phone and pulling up the picture of the tracks he had taken.

Connie looked at it. "... Maybe. I'm not sure. What do you think?"

"Well, maybe the gems started turning back and forth between thier original forms! They might not be corrupted as we think! Connie, maybe we can save them!" Steven cried, full of ignorant hope.

Connie gave a weak smile, not wanting to say it wasn't possible unless her healing had gotten to them, and that couldn't have happened, she had never seen them before today. "Yeah… Maybe. Er… Steven, my healing powers, they can't fix a gem's broken mind-"

"But if it's half corrupted-" Steven insisted.

Connie interrupted him with a firmness. "Steven. I can't do it alone, I need-"

A growl suddenly interrupted their conversation and they gasped in fear. Steven peeked out before grabbing Connie's hand and running away from their shelter.

Steven soon slid to a stop however, leading Connie to knock into him and hit her nose. She bit back the pain, knowing it was unwise to make a sound near a confused and corrupt gem, for she was now.

The gem was clawing at a wall, clearly trying to escape from something, or someone.

"It seems scared, do you think it's running away… from us?" Connie asked, thinking it should be the other way around.

"Maybe it's running away from itself!" Steven said poetically. Connie hurriedly covered his mouth so he wouldn't give away their position.

Suddenly, they heard Peridot's very loud and obnoxious voice. "CHILDREN! IT'S ME! PERIDOT! YOUR TRAINER! I CAN'T TELL IF I'M SCREAMING OVER THIS WIND! AM I?!"

The gem monster turned at the noise, and saw the children.

They both were mortified.

"Connie, turn it off!" Steven cried in panic.

Connie fumbled with it, her mittens too slippery from the snow. "I-I'm trying!"

"BY THE WAY, WHEN YOU'RE NEAR THE MONSTER? DO NOT MAKE ANY LOUD NOISES!" Peridot yelled.

Connie started to sweat, turning all then knobs, trying to get it off.

"PICK UP, PLEASE! I'M GOING TO KEEP TALKING TILL YOU DO!"

Steven snatched the walkie talkie away and threw it far and into the snow.

Connie saw the monster and gasped. She went for her sword, but Steven stopped her.

"Connie, we should try and resolve this peacefully! Let's just talk to it!" Steven tried.

Connie nearly shook her head, but then she looked at Steven, and remembered Centi, how scared she had been when Connie first really met her… This gem, it had no idea what to do other than run from a weapon. "It's… okay. I won't harm you." She slowly reached out her hand to pet the thing, and it leaned down. "Please, remember who you once were! You can fight this!"

Just as she was about to pet it however, she a familiar sound, it sounded like… unfusing… She drew her sword, and swung around in panic.

But there was no one.

"Huh? But I thought-!" Steven suddenly shoved Connie out of the way of the gem monster, who she hadn't seen had been raising up to pounce on her and her dangerous sword.

"Connie, what was that?! You almost calmed her!" Steven creid.

Connie breathed hard, looking around wildly. "B-but…"

The two then looked up and saw the monster coming for them. Steven gasped and quickly got off of Connie and ran in the opposite direction, boomeranging his shield at it.

The thing turned to it's new target.

Steven backed into a tree and gave a nervous laugh. "N-Nice… gem!"

"What are you doing?!" Connie cried.

"I-I don't know!" Steven gulped. "But I wasn't ready for this!"

Suddenly, they heard the walkie talkie again and both looked at it with surprise. "Okay, I'm out of that wind, is this about the best gem thing? I honestly don't know who else you could've picked, but I do know that you should not tell Jasper, at all!"

Steven then belly slid under the corrupted gem and picked up the walkie talkie. "Peri, we found the gem!"

"WHAT?!" Peridot screeched. "I'll be right there!"

Suddenly, the monster screeched in pain and Connie turned and gasped in surprise.

The monster's feet were covered in ice, and the Ruby from Garnet was ontop of it, burning it.

Sapphire stood nearby, watching nearby with no expression, she had no empathy for the thing.

"I-I knew it was you! You unfused!" Connie sputtered out in shock, and Sapphire turned to her with that same grim mouth.

"Ah, Yellow Diamond. I see you brought your round friend with you, I saw him in many of my visions." Sapphire whispered, nodding to Steven. She then glared down at Connie once more. "And as for why we're split up, you, my dear, are far easier to keep still this way, can't have you trying to shatter us, hm?"

The boy ran up and guarded her. "Get away from her! O-Or I'll… uh…" He then dropped his shield. "I'll tackle you, tiny gem!"

"Oh Ruby, it seems this Steven has our only weakness, tiny hands." Sapphire chuckled, amused by the boy.

"Really?" Steven gasped.

"No." Sapphire hissed.

The children were then iced to the ground and couldn't move. They struggled in vain.

Suddenly, the gem poofed and Ruby grabbed it and took it to Sapphire. "Here we go, Saffie!" She then turned to see the others. Her teeth clenched seeing Connie. "Yellow Diamond."

"You did wonderful, Ruby!" Sapphire smiled, holding the other gem that Peridot had went to track down, it was iced over.

Ruby's anger faded at the gentle voice and she blushed. "Aw shucks, not as good as you!"

"Oh stop it!" Sapphire giggled.

Steven looked at Connie and she merely shrugged.

Suddenly, Ruby shoved Steven out of her way, formed her gauntlet and then pinned Connie to the ground by her neck with her free hand, shattering the ice. "I can't wait to shatter you!" She laughed with twisted glee.

"Ruby." Sapphire said calmly, and the gem turned. "She isn't what we came for, we'll get her later, alright?"

Ruby pouted and let Connie go.

Peridot suddenly landed beside them.

"Children, where's…" Peridot then noticed Steven was face planted in the snow and turned to see Connie staring at the two small gems as they fused.

Garnet formed and looked unfazed by the gem's sudden appearance.

"Garnet!" Peridot hissed, stabbing up with her pole.

The fusion moved her head ever so slightly so the pole didn't hit it. She then looked at Connie with a cold stare, lifting up the two poofed gems. "Look what I have. Does this make you upset at all?"

Connie shivered, unsure what to say.

"Of course it doesn't." Garnet then gave a cruel smirk, and walked away, into the blizzard behind her, laughing into the wind.

Peridot then turned to them. "Are you two alright? I know you both must be mentally scarred, but your bodies, are they-"

"They're fine." Connie whispered softly.

Steven ran up and she hugged them both.

"I never would've let you come on this mission if I knew those two… er, one clod would be here!" Peridot cried, pulling away to check their faces.

Steven suddenly looked up with big tears rolling down his face. "I-I'm sorry!" He blubbered.

"What? Why?" Peridot asked in confusion.

"I couldn't save C-Connie! I wasn't ready, a-and that fusion-!"

"Steven, it's okay!" Connie laughed, and wiped his eyes, hugging him.

"You passed with flying colors, Steven Demayo, make no mistake about that!" Peridot reassured him. "You called me, and that was exactly what you were supposed to do!"

Steven sniffed a little. "You aren't upset with me?"

"No, not in the slightest." Peridot hugged him.

"Thanks…" The boy then smiled big and held out his phone. "Smile!"

They did, Peridot was squished in between them and looked like she was about to sneeze in the photo.

"Steven, what do you plan to do with that photo?" Peridot asked nervously, walking him to the warp pad.

"I'll show all my pictures to everyone in town!" Steven cried. "And then, I'll keep them, forever!"

Connie had stayed behind, staring into the cold blizzard, shivering as she thought of Garnet.


	96. Make Some Waves

"We will be gone for several hours-" Peridot was interrupted by Connie.

"But-" Connie tried, running up, but Peridot shushed her.

"Connie, you know better than to interrupt." Peridot muttered.

Jasper than noticed Lapis laying on the couch. "Hey Lapis!"

Lapis looked up from her book of hair styles and sat up on the couch. "Yeah?"

"Protect the temple and Connie with your gem on the line, got it?"

Lapis looked confused. "Er, of course, I always do… Man, you really are stressed about-"

"The fact you might flood the house if you get startled again? Sure am." Jasper smirked, though Lapis' knew for certain that wasn't it.

"Okay, that only happened once, and it was your fault! You shapeshifted into a shark and came out of the sink!" Lapis growled.

"Ah, that was a great prank..." Jasper sighed in the cherished memory.

"Nothing's going to startle me like that ag-"

"Steven's here early!" Steven yelled, slamming open the door and riding in on Lion.

Lapis gave a yell in fear, water coming out of the kitchen sink drain and soaking Steven and Lion.

"Hey, what'd I do?" Steven sputtered.

Lion immediately shoved Steven off his back and started licking himself frantically. Why water?!

"Peridot, I was trying to tell you, Steven and I have training today." Connie muttered softly to the surprised tiny gem.

"Oh clod! I completely forgot! Curse this memory of mine!" Peridot groaned, slapping her hand on her forehead.

"You're looking for that big buff strong gem, right?" Steven asked.

"I'm actually right here, guys." Jasper chuckled.

They all looked over in confusion.

"Wha…? I'm a big buff strong gem!" Jasper yelled.

They all forced out laughs as quickly as possible as to not get punished.

Jasper than rolled her eyes. "But yeah, we are looking for Garnet."

"That is why, I'm sorry to say, you children will not be training in my company this morning, but instead in Lapis'." Peridot then said, reverting their attention back to her. "Next week, we will train without that fusion hanging over our heads!"

"Yep! See ya guys later!" Jasper called as they warped away.

Lapis then flew to the kids, putting a arm around each. "So, I know your training is important, but how about we take the day off? You two must be be really stressed from fighting Garnet, how about we just relax and have fun?"

* * *

Despite her hopes, Lapis was soon sitting on a broken off hand of the temple, watching them practice.

Connie fought well with her sword, and Steven blocked well. The girl then leapt over him, trying to catch him by surprise, but he swung around, and his shield collided with her body on accident.

Connie's sword flung out of her hand and she fell into the sand. She glanced over at her weapon, then decided she didn't need it. She then ran with lightning speed back to Steven, and started punching, blocked by his shield.

"You're amazing at hand to hand!" Steven cried in surprise. "How are you so good at it?!"

"Jasper started teaching me hand to hand combat when I was six! She made sure I'd alway be able to defend myself!" Connie laughed. "One day, both my sword and powers could be compromised, it's good to be prepared!"

She then leapt into the air. Steven shielded his head and Connie landed on the metal surface, pushing him into the ground.

The two panted heavily.

"Lapis! How did I do? Any comments on my form?" Connie asked. She then noticed Lapis had dozed off. "Lapis!"

"What?!" Lapis gasped, bolting up from her nap.

"You weren't watching?" Connie asked, clearly disappointed.

Lapis looked between the two and gave a nervous laugh. "Sorry! Er, I'll pay more attention this time, and I won't fall asleep, promise!"

Connie nodded and then grabbed her sword once more, running at Steven and hitting his shield repeatedly to make sure he didn't falter.

Lapis watched with concentration for as long as she could before started to close her eyes again.

"Did you see _that_?"

Lapis' eyes popped open and she sat up, clapping her hands with a smile. "Yes! You both did so good!"

"Mm, you think?" Connie asked, looking at her stance and adjusting it slightly.

Steven gave a sigh. "I dunno, I need my guard up higher, and I can't look back at Connie when I'm guarding or else I get distracted and I mess up!"

Lapis and Connie exchanged a look before going to Steven's side.

"Steven, why are you being so hard on yourself right now?" Lapis asked gently, bending down to look at him.

Steven sighed. "It was my first mission, and I couldn't protect Connie. My feet just… froze."

"Oh! You mean literally! My feet were also frozen to the ground so," Steven held up a hand to stop Connie.

"No, when we were fighting that corrupted gem..." Steven whispered.

"Oh."

Lapis looked between the two, then sighed. "Steven, you have to get out of your head, don't beat yourself up about this. When a fight comes, you can never truly be prepared for it, you just have to fight! Understand?"

"Yes madam. Thanks!" Steven smiled.

Suddenly, Connie's stomach growled and she laughed. "Okay, I'm hungry."

"Me too!" Steven cried.

Lapis giggled and then put her hands on her hips. "Let's go get some food then!"

* * *

They were all soon munching on pizza with Lion by their side. The three sat on a park bench, Steven eating quickly while Lapis and Connie ate gently with smiles on their faces. At one point, Steven accidentally dropped a slice, and looked sad. Lapis soon flew over and dropped hers on the ground as well, and shrugged. Steven grinned.

A few minutes later and they were soaring through the sky, Connie on Lapis' back and Steven holding onto her arms, laughing. The gem than threw him up and he landed on her back. "Hold on!"

Steven wrapped his arms around Connie's waist as Connie grabbed Lapis' shoulders. They then all plunged down and soon were in the water. Steven held his breath but Connie tapped his shoulder. "Don't worry, we can breathe thanks to Lapis!"

Steven glanced around and saw they were on the smooth sandy floor of the ocean, and a dome of air surrounded them, with the ocean around that. Steven gasped in wonder, and reached out to touch a fish. The thing darted off at his touch. "This is so cool!"

Lapis rolled her eyes with a tiny smile. "Yeah, it's alright."

Connie had bent down and picked up a sand dollar. It was so pretty! She wiped off the sand and muck, and was about to place it in her pocket when Lapis suddenly grabbed her wrist so tight she thought it might break.

Lapis narrowed her eyes, holding onto both the kids wrists, her eyes then widened. "Guys, I'm going to need you to get to the beach, now."

"Lapis, what are you-?" Steven tried.

"I said, now!" Lapis yelled, and shoved them into the water.

They both weren't expecting it, and soon their lungs burned, but water hands grabbed their waists and took them to shore with lightning speed where Lion had been laying down to wait for them.

Connie looked back and then gasped in surprise. "Steven, look!"

Steven did and gasped as well.

One of the corrupted gems they had seen only days before was trying to get out of the water, held back by water chains.

Lapis flew out and had a shadowy look on her face. She made a bubble of water around the monster and froze it over.

Lion bent down and Connie leapt in to grab her sword and Steven's shield. She soon dove out and handed Steven his only means of defense.

Lapis meanwhile had shattered the ice and icicles were all around the beast, her hands up and apart. She then crossed her arms with a growl and the thing was poofed. She let the water bring it back up to her then flew to the ground.

Suddenly, she whipped around, standing protectively in front of the kids, and saw the other corrupted gem monster, with Garnet sitting ontop, looking coldly down at them.

"Oh no." Connie whispered softly.

"Yellow Diamond," Garnet said calmly. "I know that there is only one outcome to this, and that is giving yourself up to me. Doing this will grant all of your servants a chance to live, it's the only option you have that won't get them hurt."

Lapis stepped in front of the kids, yelling up at Garnet. "You're lying! I know for a fact you want to get revenge on Jasper for getting in your way, you'd never pass up an opportunity to beat her! But you'll have to go through me-!"

"You're right." Garnet hissed. "I _will_ have to poof you in order to get to Yellow Diamond and her little human friend, it's very obvious. But, sadly for you, it won't take me long."

The fusion then let the corrupted gem go and landed on the ground in front of Lapis as the monster ran to get Connie and Steven.

"We have a second chance! Let's not waste it!" Connie cried.

Steven flattened his shield so Connie could leap into it and pounce on top of the corrupted gem. She gave a yell as the thing tried to buck her off, and held onto its mane for dear life.

Meanwhile, Garnet having difficulty with the water clone Lapis had made. She avoided its punches and growled in anger. She then thought of something and unfused. Sapphire froze the clone and then grabbed Ruby's hand, running to the ocean.

Lapis lunged for them, but Ruby was quick to punch her away with her gauntlet.

Sapphire then froze the ocean with a smile. "Ruby, why do you keep wanting us to unfuse? You know I love being with you always."

Ruby gave a chuckle. "And you know I love looking at you."

Sapphire smirked looking at the ice, and then she frowned. "Ruby, punch up with your left arm, please."

Lapis gasped as Ruby nearly hit her.

Sapphire gave a sigh and turned to the gem. "Dear, I've frozen off your main weapon, no matter how hard you try, I'll just refreeze it, you have barely enough to fly, why keep fighting us? You're going to lose."

Lapis gave a growl, avoiding Ruby's punches. She then slammed on the gem's head before leaping off and in front of Sapphire. She formed icicles and threw them at the aristocratic gem, only for them to come hurtling back at her. Lapis ducked.

"Why did Yellow Diamond even start to trust you?" Sapphire laughed. "You're too unstable with your emotions, you were made to bring her to Homeworld! Why didn't she just-"

"It doesn't matter what her first impressions were, what she planned to do to me! She… She grew to love me!" Lapis yelled, avoiding Ruby by flying up.

"Love? Is that what you think she'd keep you around for? A Diamond _can't_ love, you're only blinded by your own love for her, just like Jasper and that defective Peridot are!" Sapphire laughed.

Lapis landed on the ground, her eyes shadowy. "You think that? Why don't you tell me what you _think_ she kept me around for?"

"To use you as a weapon, of course. Isn't that what you were made for? To be a weapon? You were not made to be a gem with real feelings like Ruby or I. You were made to _shatter_!"

Lapis gave a yell in anger, lunging at Sapphire.

Sapphire gave a sigh and then grabbed Lapis' wrist just as she was about to hit her. Ice creeped up the gem's arm and Lapis wrenched in pain.

"Lapis?" Connie cried.

Ruby looked at her with a cruel smile. "For someone made to destroy you, she sure is easy to catch!" She then gave a chuckle. "And now that she's useless, I can finally shatter you!"

"Don't… you… _dare_ …" Lapis growled, she then ripped out of the ice and lunged for Ruby. "TOUCH HER!"

Ruby smirked as Sapphire zoomed to her and they fused. Lapis gasped in surprise but Garnet had already grabbed her by her wrist, holding her up. "She knew that would get you… it was useless fighting you, you would've won… until Ruby factored in her... Her and your painful past, of course." Garnet then stabbed her destabilizer into Lapis and the gem screamed in pain.

"Lapis!" Connie yelled in fear, and Steven had to block the monster's claws from hitting her. Connie then grabbed Steven's hand and they ran to get Lapis back.

"I wish I could shatter you, but Pink Diamond wants to keep you all to herself now." Garnet hissed at the gem in her hand. "I don't understand why she'd change her mind so quickly from wanting you all dead."

Steven and Connie gave war cries in fury, and they unknowingly fused into Stevonnie.

Garnet's glasses poofed off of her three eyes as she stared, dropping Lapis' gem. "You… You… Who are you? I couldn't have predicted you'd fuse!"

"Whoa…" Stevonnie gasped, seeing Connie's pale yellow top on and shorts. "I-I did fuse. M-My name is Stevonnie! I too am made of love!"

Garnet then shook her head in anger. This fusion, though made of love and care just like she was, not forced together, just like her, they still wouldn't distract her from getting Yellow Diamond, they couldn't! "Well then, Stevonnie, you'll never exist again!"

"You're seeing the wrong future!" Stevonnie yelled as they dodged Garnet's punch and their hands glowed as they fought with their sword. They then scooped Lapis' gem off the ground and leapt back. Garnet tried to grab her back but Stevonnie blocked her hand with their shield.

Lion meanwhile roared at the corrupted gem and sent it flying away from his new owner.

The gem landed hard on the sand and tried to run but Garnet grabbed it's tail, throwing it back on the ground. "I don't think so!"

Stevonnie then smiled and petted Lion as a sign of thanks. They then placed Lapis' gem down.

"Wait here, I'll protect you." Stevonnie whispered to Lapis' gem. They then turned to face Garnet.

The fusion was already ontop of the corrupted gem, waiting for them.

Stevonnie got on Lion with a look of determination and sighed. "I don't want to do this, you're a fusion, just like me."

"I'm _nothing_ like you." Garnet spat. "You're half human! I'd never commit that crime, how could a gem, much less a Diamond care for such a stupid creature?"

"I'm sure you'd love him if this all was different! You'd love me!" Stevonnie yelled. "You'd be so happy that I existed if you were with us! W-Why didn't you join Yellow Diamond?"

"This. All of this!" Garnet growled. "You know exactly why I'm fighting you!"

Stevonnie then charged on Lion with a yell. They was soon leapt into the air, throwing their shield. Garnet had already moved her head, having predicted it, but Stevonnie did something she wasn't expecting. They put their shield under their feet and landed with all the pressure they could muster on the corrupted gem, and it poofed. They fell.

After the hard fall, Stevonnie was soon up, dusting sand from themself, meanwhile Lapis was reforming behind her.

"Connie, Steven! Please be okay! I-" Lapis then saw Stevonnie staring down at Garnet with their hair blowing in the wind. Lapis now wore a blue tank top with different shades of blue crossing it and a short blue skirt just above her knees with blue silk fins coming out from the sides. Her bow was still there though. A fabric yellow diamond was on the collar of her shirt, just like the other Crystal Temps beside Pearl and Connie. She had made this form to fight, but she then saw the fight was already over.

"How?! The one thing that gave me an advantage, is always used against me with you Temps!" Garnet growled, glaring up at Stevonnie. "You may be made of love, but you will never be as advanced as I am! … And Yellow Diamond?" She smirked.

Stevonnie tightened their sword hand.

"I look forward to fighting your fusion soon." Garnet then leapt over them all and was soon gone after leaping a few rooftops of the town.

Stevonnie stared after her. "That was… unsettling."

"You did it… all by yourselves?" Lapis whispered behind them.

"Lapis!" In Stevonnie's surprise, they unfused to reveal Connie and Steven who looked surprised as well.

"You're back!" Connie cried.

"And you changed clothes!" Steven gasped with stars in his eyes.

"I did!" Lapis smiled shakily, and bent down to hug them. "Oh, I'm so, so proud of you two!"

"It was just like you said! I wasn't thinking about how I messed up before, I was thinking on how I could improve!" Steven laughed.

"All that training, it went together so perfectly!" Connie gushed. "We might not have poofed her, but we will soon, I know it!"

"And we fused!" Steven finished with a grin so big it barely fit his cheeks.

Connie and Steven laughed happily with Lion by their side, walking back to the temple to tell Peridot and Jasper. They didn't notice Lapis had stayed behind.

"I-I'm so glad! You protected yourselves!" Lapis' call wasn't heard though. Her smile vanished and she somberly said, "I… couldn't protect her."


	97. Connie Vs Lapis

Peridot and Jasper warped in a few minutes after Steven had been dropped off at the van, feeling rather unhappy at their results.

"I can't believe we didn't find Garnet…" Jasper grunted softly.

"We found Garnet!" Connie announced, running into the house to jump into Jasper's arms for a big bear hug.

"WHAT?!" Peridot screeched, Lapis walking in with her ears covered.

Jasper was surprised for a moment, then gave it to her. She then took the girl by the shoulders, a serious and demanding growl coming from her. "Where is she."

"S-She left, I don't know where!" Connie panted.

Peridot tugged her away from Jasper, checking to see if she was alright. "Are you hurt? Is your gem okay? Did Steven get hurt? His body's fragile-"

"No! We're just fine, I walked Steven home myself!" Connie smiled reassuringly. "Garnet showed up with those corrupted gems, and then she unfused. Steven and I fought a corrupted gem

while Lapis fought Garnet, she was really brave!"

Jasper's eyes wided, and looked behind Connie to see Lapis just standing in the doorway, lost in her sea of thoughts.

Jasper saw her new form and slowly walked up to the gem. "Lapis… are you okay?"

Lapis didn't look up. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Jasper was silent for a moment, then whispered. "Listen, I get if you were scared, and if you don't want to fi-"

"I'm _fine_ , Jasper." Lapis growled.

Jasper frowned and then went back over to Connie, shrugging in confusion.

* * *

A few minutes later, Connie was in her training outfit with sword in hand, excitedly waiting in front of Peridot.

"Connie, I I know you're smart enough to know that this fight with Garnet will not be your last with her." Peridot said sternly.

"I do know. It was a minor victory that should not be celebrated." Connie answered bluntly back.

Peridot chuckled. "Connie, of course it something to be celebrated! Jasper has been working to make your favorite dessert to congratulate you!"

Connie looked over to see Jasper had accidentally ripped off the refrigerator door while trying to get lemons for the lemon bars. She gave a wave to Connie. The girl waved back with a giggle.

Lapis from the couch meanwhile watched Connie like she was the most precious thing in the world, and to this gem, she was. Connie didn't notice though.

The girl bounded up to Lapis with a grin.

"Lapis! Want to watch me train?" Connie asked hopefully.

The gem glanced at her with a shrug. "Um… okay."

Peridot was surprised that Lapis hadn't been overjoyed to hear Connie wanting to watch her. She hadn't heard Lapis this down since the day she joined the Crystal Temps, the day that she apologized for hurting both her and Jasper.

Lapis walked up and they warped away.

* * *

"Now, to truly defeat a powerful fusion like Garnet alone, you must be able to know thier strengths and weaknesses. Knowing that will give you a advantage over them." Peridot exsplained to Connie who had her hands behind her back as the gem paced in front of her like a war general.

"Understood!" Connie replied with determination.

As Lapis watched from the bleachers, she remembered how Garnet had known Lapis was stronger, that the only reason the blue gem didn't win was because she had been distracted by her two worst weaknesses: her past, and her love for Connie. She didn't know for certain if love truly was a weakness, after all, that was what Garnet was made of, but love had still brought her downfall.

Lapis watched for hours Connie train to the point of exhaustion, for the Temps didn't stop thier training until something came up or they just couldn't any more. Connie had grown far past the holo Peridots by now and had advanced to fighting Lapis' water clones every practice. The girl kept beating them, with her graceful kicks and skilful slashes, she needed no positive reinforcement to guide her on. Peridot still cheered for her though.

Lapis realized in the middle of the practice that Connie had gotten a lot stronger since her last watching of a practice, she could control her destablizing power perfectly at this point, since no one had enraged or upset her, easily could slash through hordes of enemies, and her hair no longer frizzed up during combat from her unexpected bursts of electric currents, for she could now sense them. Her speed had gone up to where she was near a blur at her full power, she could pick up half of a pillar with her abnormal Diamond strength and still managed to not have a single hair fall out place from her tight braid. It was incredible, and Lapis honestly wondered if Connie had gotten even stronger than her.

When she finally couldn't do it any longer, Connie, Lapis and Peri walked back to the warp pad.

"How did I do, Lapis?" Connie asked, a certain glow about her with the job done.

"Fine." Lapis grunted, her eyes a bit shadowy. "You did fine, Connie."

The girl wondered if she had done or said something wrong, then realized Lapis must've been feeling awful about not being able to save her…

* * *

"Help! Somebody help me!" Connie cried, backing up into the kitchen counter.

"Connie?! What's wrong?!" Lapis cried, flying in from her room. She then saw a tall and falling apart robot that had a sword in its hand pointed at Connie who had dropped her own sword, she recognized it as a robot Peridot had made when Connie was a little toddler that had meant to act as her guard and nanny whenever all the Temps had to leave for a mission and Doug swamped in work. It must've gotten reactivated, but Lapis knew exactly what was going on.

"Ah! Lapis, it's going to get me!" Connie moaned, putting a hand to her head to look scared. Lapis only rolled her eyes and kicked the piece of junk over, glaring at Connie.

"You saved me!" Connie gushed. "I knew you would! You're my-!"

"It's amazing that this robot that Peridot gave you after it went rouge, just happened to wake up today of all days after being deactivated for about four years, isn't it?" Lapis sighed with a bored look on face.

"I-I know!" Connie laughed nervously. "It was such a shock! But you saved me, and you did so great!"

Lapis groaned and flopped on the couch, not bothering to tell Connie she didn't need to pity her. "I know you fired it up just so I would come and save you, you could've easily switched it off it or destroyed it if you really had been attacked by it."

Connie gave a sad sigh and gather up the parts of her broken machine, then trudged up the stairs to store it in her closet again. "I'm sorry, Lapis, but I wanted you to feel better."

"I don't think I'm ever going to feel better until I beat Garnet." Lapis grunted softly, flipping herself to lay on her back.

Connie ran up to her loft bedroom so she could look at Lapis' sad face. "That's no way to think."

"I know, but out of all of us, _you_ were the one to send her running." Lapis moaned, glaring up at the girl, not really caring at the moment if it would hurt her feelings. "You!"

Connie narrowed her eyes in confusion and slight anger. "Uh… what's _that_ supposed to mean?"

"You used to be weak and well… pathetic! I used to save you, not the other way around!" Lapis cried, turning away to face the kitchen. "I'm sorry, but it's kinda annoying!"

"Oh! Well then, I'm so sorry I learned to defend myself from gems who want to shatter me!" Connie huffed sarcastically.

Lapis' eyes widened and then flew up and leaned to Connie's face with a frown. "Urgh! No! I didn't say I'm not thankful that you can! It's just… I was supposed to beat Garnet and show to everyone I was just as strong as her, both physically and mentally but-!

"You want to beat Garnet so bad? Your first step is beating me!" Connie cried. "The first to give in loses!"

There was a silence and the two glared slightly at one another.

"Sounds perfect." Lapis hissed.

* * *

Both of the elegant gems were brutal when in concentrated fights, Jasper and Peridot could tell that to anyone. However, they had never fought each other before this day.

Connie didn't notice that neither she nor Lapis were acting like their normal selves, that what Garnet had said and done had torn them apart, made them this way. The girl knew once Lapis was happy again, she would be as well.

"Since I was so weak and pathetic before, let's see if I improved!" Connie growled, taking out her mother's sword.

"You have, that's why it's going to feel amazing when you give in!" Lapis yelled back, her wings flaring to life.

Connie gave a laugh and smirked. "Temps don't give in." Her hands started to glow yellow and Lapis' eyes widened in shock and she slowly backed up. Connie didn't notice.

The girl then gave a cry and ran at Lapis, her sword by her side.

Lapis leapt up, crying in shock, and Connie had to swerve off her path to avoid hitting a pillar.

Lapis landed and caught Connie by her waist, flinging her onto the bleachers. The girl gave a groan in pain, it hurt so bad… Lapis knew it was still her, still a fragile half human, didn't she?

The girl attempted to lift her sword but then realized it had frozen to the floor. "Ugh! Really?! That's a good move!"

Lapis said nothing, a wild look in her eyes, staring down at Connie.

"Are you.. okay up there?" Connie laughed nervously. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Lapis gave a yell, and a shot of pure ice fired at Connie's gem.

Connie abandoned her sword with a gasp in terror and leapt over Lapis, landing on the tiled floor on her stomach before scrambling away.

She then noticed Connie had seen her sword had unfreezed when Lapis had made her wings. She must've forgotten to fill her gem with more water!

Lapis gave a growl and Connie stopped midrun because her legs were pulled out from under her.

Connie grabbed the chains and electricity shot up them, making Lapis gasp and leap away to dodge.

The half gem grabbed her sword and leapt to Lapis with a war cry.

Lapis blocked it with a ice shield and Connie was thrust up in the air with water around her neck. The water made Connie grow face to face with Lapis.

"L-Lapis…?" Connie whispered, shaking. "W-What did I do? Why did you…?"

Lapis panted hard, and then her eyes seemed to once again gain their ocean blue colour instead of the wide eyes, Connie hadn't seen it since thier encounter with Garnet. Tears welled up in her eyes and she fell to her knees with a sob, releasing Connie.

"I'm so sorry…" Lapis whispered. "Just… you've never aimed your destabilising powers at me and… the last time those powers were shown…"

"My mother was fighting you after you poofed Jasper and Peri?" Connie finished with a whisper.

Lapis numbly nodded. "M-Maybe what I was made to do isn't truly out of me! What if I've been hiding it, and I didn't even know it?!"

"Lapis!" Connie cried, grabbing her shoulders.

Lapis looked up at her girl with teary eyes. "What?"

"Have you been thinking that since Garnet reminded you?"

Lapis slowly nodded. "I-I guess.. I know deep down that I'd never hurt you on purpose… I was made to conquer a Diamond, but I can't even defeat a two gem fusion, I can't beat you… I… I sometimes wonder why they even made me if I just failed their expectations, what good am I to this world?"

Connie gave a dry laugh, wiping away tears. "I wonder that about myself, all the time! Why have me when you could have my mother?

Lapis clenched her teeth and shoved Connie into a hug, gripping her head. "Don't think that! I never want you to feel you have to live up to her. Just like everyone else on this planet, people love you, and you were made to be here, with us."

"The same goes to you." Connie whispered.

Lapis laughed as tears slipped down her face. "Who taught you to be this smart?"

"I did, but not enough to have her know about the importance of these ruins!" A familiar voice rang out, making them gasp and turn to see Peridot practically fuming in the entryway. She then frowned. "What were you two doing anyway?"

"Er, nothing really!" Connie laughed nervously, pulling away.

"No lemon bars for either of you until you clean this mess up!"

"Aw man!" Lapis moaned, and got to work cleaning.


	98. Zircon

"Connie, all your training has lead up to this, are you ready?" Peridot whispered.

The other Crystal Temps sat around her with solemn faces.

"... I was born to do this." Connie said softly, looking at the only mission she had left to do. She then clicked the 'a' button on her 64 controller and watched Link walk into his final battle of the game.

"BEAT THAT PIG INTO THE DIRT, KID!" Jasper yelled, and they all cheered for her.

Connie suddenly paused, making Jasper and Peri give sighs in disappointment. The girl looked over to see Lion was chewing up one of Connie's dresses. She gasped in surprise and ran down. "Lion!"

"No! Lion, stop this! This is my favorite dress!" Connie grunted, trying to rescue the dress from his strong jaws. The girl soon fell back with a cry.

Lion didn't look the least bit ashamed, he merely stared at the dress.

Connie sighed and brushed off the dress. Despite yellow being her favorite color, her favorite dress was a long striped one, with a white stripe, then a yellow which mixed with the blue stripe, and then pink. She liked that order for some reason.

Connie trotted up the stairs and hung up the dress in her closet before slumping down to continue her game. "Now back to-"

Lion had already grabbed her dress again, and stared at Connie just before leaping away with it.

"Lion!" Connie yelled, taking one giant leap and landing perfectly. She then wrestled the dress away again with getting annoyed as he was trying to escape. "Since you can't leave it alone, I'll just have to put this dress somewhere you'll never get it! In your mane."

Lion huffed but bowed to her anyway, knowing he'd have to do it at sometime.

"Thank you, boo." Connie whispered, kissing him gently on the nose before leaping in.

* * *

The dimension in Lion's mane hadn't changed a bit since Connie had last seen it. Same tree, same flag, same Mr. Universe shirt, and the same yellow bubble that floated in the branches of the tree. Connie had always wondered why her mother had kept this gem here, she had seen a majority of yellow bubbles in the Burning Room, why was this gem so special?

Connie ran to the tree and folding the dress up neatly, placing it on a branch's nook. She smiled at how this was something that truly belonged to her, that could stay in forever, it made her remember that this was her place, and her mother had wanted it to be. The girl backed up to view it all when she tripped and fell into the bubbled gem causing it to pop. Connie gave a cry, then plunged out of the mane.

Connie popped out of the mane just to hear, "And that's how I managed to fit 88 burritos in my mouth."

Peri looked disgusted at Jasper. That was unsettling.

"I made a mistake! But don't worry, I'll fix it!" Connie yelled suddenly, making them all jump up. She then dove back in.

Connie soon popped over the edge of the grass to pick up the popped gem. Suddenly, it started to reform and Connie held her breath in terror.

The smooth, square-looking gem rose up, and a seemingly adult human-sized form was made. The yellow gem had her hair, if you could call it that, upward in two spikes, slightly tilted. She wore clothes that give Connie the impression of a war general, a yellow suit with golden buttons and the only speck that wasn't yellow was her white shirt collar, which was to show the yellow diamond stitched in.

Connie saw this gem was on its chest, much like hers. However, it seems to be holding a tie shape around it. The gem landed, blocking her face from something.

The yellow gem slowly took her hands away when she realized no one was there to attack her and the two stared at each other, both unsure what to say or do as the wind blew. Connie suddenly fell back out of Lion to tell the others.

"There was a gem!" Connie announced, the Temps had all gathered around. "

"What? That's impossible!" Peridot huffed.

"She looks like a lawyer, almost." She then popped into Lion again to take another look.

The gem was searching around, wondering where she was just as Connie stuck her head up beside her. The gem noticed and gasped. "You there! Stop-!"

Connie didn't let her finish, going back out. "She's yellow, just like I am, and her gem is on her chest, it looks like a tie."

Jasper and Peridot gave each other a look.

"Bring her out." Jasper demanded.

Connie was shocked, but then nodded. "If you say so."

She popped back in and looked around for the gem. Suddenly, that gem walked out in front of her and Connie looked up in surprise and whimpered slightly.

"Stop right there!" The gem growled, pointing at her accusingly. "Just where are you going? I need you to tell me where I am and how to get out, now!"

Connie glanced down and then back up at the gem with a smile.

They soon emerged, Lion was very confused at this new arrival.

The Temps stared, Peridot looked utterly shocked while Jasper was smirking, just after her own stare. Lapis looked at them, then looked back to the new gem.

"Who are you?" Lapis asked softly.

The gem didn't give her a answer, only giving a huff in Peridot and Jasper. "Stop embarrassing yourselves already, it's rude to stare!"

Jasper gave a yell in joy and squished the gem into a hug. The quartz gave a chuckle.

"I can't believe I could miss you so much, you fancypants!"

Connie frowned in confusion.

"My, you _have_ missed me! Jasper, a bit attached, hm?" The gem chuckled, but under her breath so Jasper couldn't hear the joy in her voice. Connie thought she saw she was trying to hold back a smile.

The gem then looked back to see Peridot staring at her and leapt down to walk up.

"I-I thought I'd never see you again!" Peridot whispered with surprise. "I-I thought you may have been cracked, or shattered!"

"Peridot, what have I told you about jumping to conclusions?" The gem huffed snootily.

"I shouldn't jump to any until I have proper evidence." Peridot grumbled, crossing her arms. "You know I'm usually correct, this is a special circumstance."

"You haven't changed a bit I see, still your usual self absorbed self." Zircon moaned.

Connie held back her growl in anger. Peri wasn't self absorbed, not all the time anyway.

"Neither have you." Peridot growled. "You still are a know-it-all, Zircon…. It feels nice having someone who's as smart as I am again."

"I enjoy our banter as well. Now then, you're distracting me from what's really important." Zircon said with a smirk, straightening up. "Where is my Diamond?"

The gems went quiet and Zircon cocked her head in confusion. "Well? Someone answer me!"

"Um Zircon..." Connie whispered, making her gasp in suprise, having completely ignored the human hybrid until now.

"Why are you still here?! Don't you have to go hunt for food or sew clothes like the rest of your hideous species?" The Zircon sniffed pointly.

Lapis made a face of anger that Zircon had called the girl hideous but Connie gave her a look that stopped her from giving some choice words.

Peri also had been angered, but held it back because she assumed that just like her mother, their bickering would get Connie angry.

Connie then pulled her shirt down to show her gem. "I'm not a normal human."

The Zircon looked at the Diamond shining back at her and gave a terrified gasp, immediately placing her hands into a diamond symbol. "Disregard my statement of saying humans were hideous, my most lustrous, radiant, glimmering, beautiful, shining-!"

"Please, don't do that…" Connie sighed, but Zircon kept blabbering on about how it was merely a joke about humans, and how she looked absolutely breath-taking in this form and how Zircon herself adored humans. "I'm not Yellow Diamond, I'm Connie, her daughter. She.. turned into me…"

Zircon paused her frightened ramble when she heard Connie say her Diamond turned into her and adjusted her molecule, squinting in confusion. Then a circular screen projected from it, showing a picture of Yellow Diamond with it zoomed in on her gem, and beside it came another circle of yellow that had a picture of Connie that it must've somehow just taken. It was zoomed in on her gem as well. The two Diamond suddenly blinked in yellow outlines and then glowed brightly. The gem gave a sound in confusion, staring at Connie. "According to this scan, you are indeed my Diamond, but with a human body halting her forming." She then made the Diamond symbol once more. "I am here to serve you my most beautiful, glowing, radiant, lovely, shining, divine… Connie."

Peridot rolled her eyes. She forgot how Zircon had always tried to outdo her when it came to… well everything, but especially when she was around her Diamond and now Connie.

"Oh, um… you don't need to say all that, Connie will do."

"Of course, Connie." Zircon smiled pridefully.

"If I may ask, since you have her radiance inside of you, do you know me at all?"

Connie gave a sigh. She knew that would come up. "I'm afraid not. I… want to be treated by you as you would treat any human, you can say anything you'd like, please understand I'm not your Diamond."

Zircon's eyes narrowed, staring into her eyes and Connie felt rather uncomfortable. The gem then smirked. "That's alright, I suppose."

"You're like a second Peridot." Lapis moaned. "She had to check all the facts too when meeting Connie."

Every gem turned to her and Zircon nodded to her very briefly, then turned to Jasper, not hiding her look of disgust. "A Lapis Lazuli I notice. I didn't realize we were taking in hostages now."

"We aren't, Z. She's part of the team." Jasper mumbled. Lapis smiled slightly behind Zircon.

"Why did you build a wooden structure around the warp pad? Metal would be more useful as long as Peridot doesn't have a temper tantrum." Zircon suddenly said, changing the subject.

"Our Diamond wanted it." Peridot explained with a growl.

Zircon quieted, looking back at Connie. Her cold look of confusion slowly faded into a grin. "... Of course she did! She's ever so brilliant, with all her choices!"

Connie smiled shyly back.

"Now, where is Idocrase and Citrine? Have they been practicing their battle method while I was gone?"

"There's…something you need to see." Connie asked softly.

* * *

"T-They didn't train hard enough! I should've pushed them harder!" Zircon growled in anger, looking around at the battlefield devoid of gem life. "T-Those dull, ungrateful-!"

"Zircon, we know I just trying to hide your feelings, you can let them out if you want..." Peridot whispered.

"I… I don't understand what went wrong, that's all." Zircon said softly through gritted teeth. She didn't shed a single tear, and Connie wondered if she always had tried to keep her emotions from her teammates. "I-I planned our strategy perfect!"

They all stood at the strawberry battlefield, silent.

"Homeworld outnumbered us." Jasper whispered. "They still do."

"You haven't beaten Homeworld yet?" Zircon asked, confused. "Why would Yellow Diamond just abandon you if you haven't?"

"I don't quite understand it either, Zircon, but I know that we need all the help we can get in defending Earth." Connie said, walking up with a tiny smile.

"Well of course I'll help." Zircon said, rolling her eyes. "I only joined because of my Diamond but despite it I became attached to my teammates." She gave a dark chuckle. "And with you all to help, I'm going to make Homeworld pay for taking our team away, and it starts by reviewing all my plans!"

"Plans? What plans?" Connie asked as Zircon strode past her and to the warp pad, smiling.

"You'll see!" Zircon called in a sing-song voice.

* * *

"What is this place? And why didn't anyone tell me about it?" Connie asked softly in awe.

"This is our strategy room. All battle formations, attacks and anything at all to do with the war was planned here, by your mother approving all of it herself. She spent a lot of time here before..." Jasper trailed off, not wanting to talk about the day she couldn't save anyone from corruption. She grimaced. "Listen, we didn't tell you because, eh, you know us, Connie, we don't really like to plan things out like you or Zircon."

"Oh."

The Temps had came to a spacious yellow room just on the edge of a hot springs in the middle of nowhere, but the room was empty besides a large screen that looked like one Connie had seen when she had first truly spoken to Pearl.

"Those plans were made by myself, Connie!" Zircon said boastfully, clearly wanting to impress her new ally. "Peridot, turn it on."

Peridot walked over to the screen and pressed a few buttons.

Suddenly, a large yellow throne came up from their hidden places in the ground like machinery as the screen came to life full of writings in gem language.

Connie stared in wonder, but Zircon acted as if it was nothing.

The girl knew Zircon was expecting her to take the throne, because she looked at her with a coy smile and then nodded to the massive seat, as if Connie was a little child in need of help.

Connie gingerly walked up and stared up at the giant throne. "I… um… don't think I can get up there."

"Just shapeshift!" Zircon laughed as if was the simplest thing.

Lapis, Jasper and Peri all looked embarrassed for Connie and the new gem got the hint.

"You can't even shapeshift?!" Zircon cried with a laugh, making Connie grit her teeth and blush harder. "How embarrassing on your part!"

Connie was fine that Zircon treated her like she would any other gem, she had requested it after all, but still felt ashamed at her lack of skill in shapeshifting.

"She doesn't need to!" Lapis huffed, glaring daggers at Zircon. "I can fly her up there myself!"

"I'd rather stay here with you all on the ground…" Connie murmured softly.

Peridot, Jasper and Lapis found this to be just like Connie, but Zircon looked at her with very slight anger. This child had her diamond now? The thing didn't shapeshift, she wasn't commanding at all, and she looked pitiful compared to Yellow Diamond in every single way, so why did the Temps respect her? It made no sense to Zircon. But it made things easier…

"Fine. If that is what you wish." Zircon clucked stubbornly, two screens coming out of her monocle. "I was working on these individual files for you two before I was, er, terminated, you'll find them useful." She told Peridot and Jasper.

"Aw yeah! I can't wait to see what you came up with, Z!" Jasper smirked, taking the screen in excitement.

Connie noticed that they both excitedly scrolled through notes and frowned. "What's so exciting?"

"Zircon watched us practice and always thought of new ways to change and enhance our performance on the battlefield." Peridot explained. "For example," She practically shoved a screen in Connie's face. The girl realized it was in gem language. "this describes how I can use metal particles from the sand and earth to my advantage, which I thought of myself about… 2,000 years later. But it would've been nice to know beforehand because I admit, Zircon thinks of things before us."

Connie scanned the writing again. "I sorta see that…" She had been trying to read and write in gem language since reuniting with Centipeedle, but it was very complex. The girl felt someone gently touch her shoulder and turned to see Lapis.

Peridot walked over to Jasper and Zircon, who seemed to be catching up, knowing from Lapis' look, she wanted to only speak to Connie.

"Connie, don't you thinks it's odd that we've never heard of Zircon until now? Peridot, Jasper, your mom, they all never mentioned her. " Lapis said softly, glancing over at the trio to make sure she wasn't heard. "I… I don't trust her, she's rude and keeps staring at us like we're..."

"not supposed to be here." Connie finished in a whisper, rubbing her arm. "I know this is hard but, look how happy Jasper and Peri are because of her." She motioned to them and Lapis saw Jasper chuckling and Peridot looking away from Zircon, not wanting her to see the happy smile she wore, that was made just for the gem being there.

"Yeah…" Lapis sighed. "I'm too judgemental I guess… They're just… never quite that happy to see me, I'm a bit…"

"Jealous?" Connie asked softly.

Lapis rolled her eyes and gave a grumble, stubbornly not admitting the truth. "I'm a bit surprised they're just so welcoming after all these years."

"You two!"

They turned to Zircon with looks of suprise and confusion.

"We're going to the Sky Arena to test your fighting skills, if you two even have any."

Lapis clenched her teeth and Connie gave a sharp inhale in anger.

* * *

"Again!" Zircon called shrilly from the bleachers. Connie gave a moan in tiredness as she performed a simple jump and slide attack for what felt like the thousandth time.

Zircon started, then jotted down more notes. "Again!"

Connie gave a sigh. "Zircon, I know you want to learn every single move I have-"

"And how much recovery time you must take." Zircon said with a smug smile.

"Er, yeah, but I'm exhausted, we've been here for five hours, doing the same things over and over again! You didn't do this for Lapis!"

"That's true, you really need to let her take a break." Lapis insisted firmly next to Zircon.

"Hm, you two really call yourself Crystal Temps? Crystal Temps don't complain about anything, they get tired over nothing, they take no breaks until told to by their leader!" Zircon then smirked, looking down at Connie's gem. "And for once, I'm that leader."

Connie frowned and sighed, turning once more to face her water clone.

* * *

Later that night, Connie was finally getting some well deserved sleep after hours of training. She had collapsed in her training clothes. Suddenly, something poked her. She mumbled slightly, trying to brush it off but it was persistent. When she finally opened her eyes she saw Zircon smiling down at her. Connie was caught unaware as to why this felt like a genuine smile

"We need to talk."

* * *

Connie soon was sitting up on the couch with her sword on her lap, Zircon had wanted to see it.

The gem gave a small laugh. "This sword, it brings back memories! Getting this made was the first thing I had ever done against our Homeworld."

Connie was surprised. "You made this?"

"Oh please, don't tell me you're this dense!" Zircon laughed again, making Connie shrink up slightly.

"If you didn't make it, who did?"

"I never really figured out who made the original design, but I do know Pink Diamond was infuriated by it missing once I hacked into her files and stole it!" The yellow gem chuckled. "I assume she had some gem design it, but I have no idea why she'd want a material weapon, nor what gem would be able to make it, a Topaz or a Bismuth perhaps… I had a blacksmith construct it yellow, just for my wonderful and perfect Diamond!"

"You hacked into it?!" Connie gasped in surprise. "W-What did my mother have you do?"

"Oh, many things. I had the sharpest mind beside hers, of course. Peridot taught me how to hack after I commanded her to, so I could make it as a suprise for her most radiance." Zircon smiled in memory. "I was the one who thought of everything for battle, I planned out everything for war, My Diamond always knew I was her smartest and most loyal companion, until…" The gem trailed off and glanced at Connie's chest, where her gem laid.

"Until what?" Connie asked softly.

Zircon smirked. "Connie, I have something to show you."

* * *

They were standing in front of the screen and Zircon pulled up a file that seemed separate from all the other files. She clicked it open and smiled.

Connie saw pages and pages of notes, scribbled out not neat like the others she had seen. Things were underlined fiercely and words were on scattered around like someone insane had wrote it, insane or vengeful…

Zircon noticed her wide eyes and chuckled. "These are my numerous theroies I created to win the war! As you can see, it is a full proof plan!"

Connie stared in confusion as Zircon started flipping through notes. She saw flashes of drawings by Zircon of her sword, gems fighting, fires, weapons, soilders, Jasper and Peridot, and finally at the last page she saw her mother sitting on a throne with cold eyes, gem shards around her feet. Connie gave a gasp in fear.

"It took multiple drafts, but I found one that worked." Zircon hissed with a smile.

"Y-You want me to… shatter Pink Diamond?!" Connie asked dryly. "B-But-!"

"Hush!" Zircon whispered in a calming tone, grabbing Connie by the shoulders. "Don't be so upset, Connie… This will end the war!"

Connie was shaking. "But… shattering… That would make us as bad as Homeworld!"

Zircon rolled her eyes with a smile. "You foolish origanic thing, don't you understand what this would do?"

Connie backed away and then gave a growl, taking out her sword. "I do! Temps may feel the urge to shatter, but we never give in to those urges! Shattering isn't what a Crystal Temp would do." Connie then sighed and glared up at Zircon. "Despite everything Pink Diamond's done to me, she's my family. I don't know if she and my mother got along but I know what my decision is. I don't hurt my family."

Zircon's eye twitched. "... You… are guilty of so many crimes… and yet you still won't destroy her? You told me the same thing years ago before you poofed me, you were angry. So I'll say it one last time… I'm giving you a chance to save the Earth, My Diamond."

Connie felt her body grow cold. "What? I-I asked you not to call me that! And I'm never going to shatter! Not ever! Promise me you won't tell the others about this plan, I-I don't know how'd they react!"

"I won't take orders from you." Zircon whispered sharply, a screen coming from her monocle. "Not after what you did to me. I was observing you for a reason earlier… just in case."

Connie was confused but Zircon suddenly swiped the screen in front of her and the girl was suddenly surrounded by laser cannons, all pointed at her.

She gave a cry and leaped away just in time as the lasers fired. She ran but fell back in panic when a sharp spear nearly impaled her heart that was shooting at her. She slid under and gasped for air.

Zircon smiled smugly. "You know, I rather enjoy this! Watching you scramble. To think, I was once in a lawyer for Homeworld! You made my pure unbiased judgement turn rotten..."

Connie grabbed her sword and hurriedly defended herself against nearly eighteen hologram Quartz soldiers. Connie didn't know any but they all glared at her. She gave yells in parry as she fought them off.

"It must hurt to fight them, My Diamond!" Zircon called with a sad sigh. "After all, these were your own soldiers that you sent to be shattered! It hurts for me to see them too! Or do you even feel anything at all?!"

Connie gave a cry in pain as one's sword cut her cheek. She finally poofed the last one, struggling for air, wishing this would stop! "Please! I'm sorry! I know there's still some good in you!"

"Good in me?! I am good! You're the monster here!" Zircon spat as a giant drill came down at Connie from the ceiling. "And you've chosen a weak and defenseless form!"

The girl pushed up with all her strength, she was getting tired of constant attacks and the painful training from before had only worked to her defeat! That was why Zircon had done it, to both tire her and plan a way to exhaust her until she wouldn't be able to defend herself!

"You told me you needed a strong army! I made you one! But a strong army needs a strong leader, My Diamond!"

"I-I'm not her!" Connie yelled, feeling herself start to sweat.

Zircon ignored the girl. "I used to think that violence wasn't the way to get things, but then you took me in and showed me the truth! After all, you're the worst of us all for your crimes! You deserve no trial for what you've done to us all! You let them go out there on the battlefield and let them all SHATTER!"

"ENOUGH!" Connie yelled, shoving the drill up with all her strength. She grabbed her sword and with a scream, lunged forward to get Zircon off guard but when she opened her eyes… her sword was stabbed through the gem's chest.

Connie gasped in horror, seeing it had nearly gotten the gem. If this has happened to a human, they'd be dead… What would she tell the Temps? That she had nearly shattered thier friend? She hadn't meant it! With this sword, she had actually stabbed someone, hurt them. She looked up to see Zircon who had wide eyes, her mouth slightly open.

"I… I don't… I didn't-!" Connie protested, tears coming to her eyes.

"I hide my emotions through… my rude outward behavior… but… I… always… assumed… before you poofed me you'd at least tell the Temps why…" Zircon whispered weakly. "And… you didn't tell them at all! None of them! They were my friends! At least I thought until I saw what I knew deep down the whole time," The gem sniffed, clenching her teeth. "nobody even cared I was gone."

"Yes, they did…" Connie sighed. "You didn't see how overjoyed you made Jasper and Peri? I haven't seen them that happy since…. never… I'll tell them. They'll care."

"Well, I'm glad they'll have a better leader then Yellow Diamond to tell them." Zircon smirked. She didn't shed a tear, Connie wondered if it was because of all the horrors and sorrows she'd already seen…

The gem poofed and fell to the floor. Connie slowly bent down and bubbled her.

* * *

After deleting all the files of the shattering project Zircon had made, Connie warped home, with Zircon bubbles between her hands.

"Ah, Connie! There you…" Peridot trailed off, seeing Connie's battleworn clothes and her bleeding cheek. She then saw the bubble and gasped in horror. Lapis and Jasper ran with her to surround Connie, all with questions but the girl only whispered, "We need to talk."

* * *

Jasper, Peridot and even Lapis mourned the loss of Zircon.

Jasper shed a single tear. She'd lost her again…

Peridot placed a hand on Jasper's which held the bubble. "W-We must let her go…"

Jasper nodded, and finally released the bubble, letting it float up to the corrupted gems.

* * *

Connie was staring the stars from the balcony, feeling numb, all she saw was a never ending loop of her scream and Zircon's face with the sword plunged through her…. It was just instincts! She didn't want to do it! Tears came down from her eyes. Oh stars, there must've been a way to change her mind, if she had only talked a bit more or said something different! She wondered if the memory would torment her forever…

She was dragged out of her thoughts when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see the Temps. She couldn't smile, but was glad they were there at least.

The family of Temps stared at the stars together, one more misfortune had come and gone. They all thought about Zircon. She another name to add to the list of gems they had hidden away…

* * *

 **It's finally done! So this chapter went through so many rough drafts and rewrites, and I started planning it long before I actually wrote this version! There were many versions, with three different gems playing the Bismith role. At first I wanted to do Topaz then went against it because I now have a better plan for that character. So then I thought, what about Yellow Pearl? I debated that but near the beginning I realized Jasper and Peri would call Yellow Pearl Pearl because they were used to that in the war, and Connie would have no idea what to call her seeing as she already has one Pearl mom! Though I loved the idea of the two pearls fighting over who was Connie's real Pearl and who would protect her the best and Connie insisting that she liked them both equally as their own selves! It came down to Zircon, who is a hard character to like! She hides her feelings by being snippy but she really loves the Crystal Temps just as much as Connie does. I hope you liked it! I worked hard to make it something people would enjoy!**


	99. Pity Her Regret

It was a beautiful morning as Lapis flew in the fresh air, going to see Amethyst and Pearl for the first time in a while. Lapis had Connie on her back, who for the first time, wasn't that happy about it. Connie sighed.

"What's wrong, Connie?" Lapis asked, glancing over her shoulder at the girl.

Connie shrugged. "I love hanging out with you, Lapis, but you've sorta been… hovering over me."

"But I'm below you." Lapis called in confusion.

"No, I mean you go with me everywhere now! You even started hanging out right by the bathroom when I'm in it! Not to mention you joining Peri in staring at me sleep when you think I'm not looking." Connie muttered, crossing her arms. She then remembered her scream and the sword plunged into Zircon yet again and shivered slightly. "I…. I handled myself fine with Zircon…"

"I'm not following you because of her, it's because of Garnet." Lapis muttered under her breath.

Connie caught the word 'Garnet' and frowned. "Lapis, you're strong enough to handle her when you're not distracted! She even told you that!"

"But she would distract me again if we ever did fight and my gem would be as good as hers." Lapis growled. "Not to mention that she'd go after you next! …I don't understand why we have to do this when she's still hunting you."

"It'll be fun to see Amethyst and Pearl again!" Connie smiled. "I'm sure they've done something lovely with the barn!"

"Oh yeah, when I think a lovely place, I just know Amethyst is living there." Lapis said, she was upset and sounded rather monotone at the reminder of her failure, Connie laughed still, hoping to lighten her mood. "She's probably totally wrecked-"

Lapis' words fell when they saw the barn. It was now painted a cream white with a beautiful yellow roof and pink curtains hung from the entryway, on one half. On the other half, it hadn't been painted at all. The left wall was gone entirely, and there seemed to be many heaps of various items piled up like mountains of treasure on that side. Pearl and Amethyst were yelling as they did something on their tv they must've stole from the Beach House, just like it seemed everything else in the treasure heaps.

"Hm, they actually split it in half! Cool!" Connie cried.

"This is a wreck..." Was all Lapis could say as she landed near Amethyst and Pearl.

"You are too much!" Pearl moaned, vigorously tapping her controller.

Amethyst gave a grunt in effort, sweating and smirked. "You shouldn't have let me get that turtle shell, P!"

"Shut up!" Pearl squaked.

Connie glanced over and saw them playing Mario Kart and giggled.

They paused in surprise and turned to see the two looking down at them.

"Connie, Lapis!" Pearl cried nervously, standing up. "We didn't know you were coming! Oh, if I knew we'd have guests-!"

"Hey kid!" Amethyst yelled in joy, putting Connie in a chokehold and giving her a noogie.

"You guys! This place is incredible!" Connie beamed, wrestling Amethyst playfully away.

Amethyst grinned and Pearl blushed.

"Oh, thank you, Connie! We worked so hard on it!" Pearl sighed with relief, adjusting a pink daisy she had placed behind her ear like she had dressed up. "You must see the inside, my half is so organized it will not literally blow you away!"

Lapis has her arms crossed and looked incredibly bored. Her eyes weren't their usual light blue when she was upset or annoyed. "Connie, can't we just go home?"

"Why, Lapis! You haven't even seen the barn! And while we're here, you and Amethyst should get to know each other! I'm sure you'll get along swimmingly!" Pearl said happily, putting her hands together.

Amethyst and Lapis looked at each other with narrowed eyes, making sure Connie couldn't see and both whispered, "... No."

Soon they entered the barn and it was a lot like the outside, split in half. The left was covered in junk and had food cartons and cans everywhere. Connie thought she saw a dinosaur skull and frowned.

The right was obviously Pearl's. It was clean and tidy, various weapons were leaned against the walls and unknowing to the guests, they had been some of the 'not good enough for my armory' weapons of fallen soldiers Rose had defeated that she had given to Pearl. Up in the loft there was a little table with two little chairs and a vase of pink daisies sat on it. The one thing that looked out of place was a rumpled pile of purple sheets. Connie was about to ask when Pearl gasped. "Oh! I almost forgot about the circular ship-looking puffs!"

Lapis and Connie looked at Amethyst with a look of confusion and she smirked. "She means cookies. You want some?"

"Cookies?!" Connie gasped in joy. "Oh, yes please!"

Lapis leaned against the wall, watching at Connie as the girl waited patiently for her treat.

Pearl hummed a little tune that sounded a lot like the first earthen song she sang as she went over to a tiny stove which stood in the middle of the room next to various baking supplies and took out a tray of cookies with her bare hands. Connie gasped but Pearl smiled. "Don't worry! We gems can withstand extreme temperatures!"

"But Jasper, Lapis and Peri wear oven mitts." Connie said confused.

Lapis gave a sigh. "That's because we have to set an example for you to always remind you of your fragile hands, Connie."

Connie smiled with a blush. "You guys are the best moms ever."

Pearl then placed the cookies down, making Connie gasp in surprise. They looked… perfect!

"H-How did you do this?! They look amazing!" Connie cried.

"Oh, I went looking for something to help me make food and I found this helpful combined paper screens! I was made for following orders after all!" Pearl announced, her gem sparked and released a book from it. Connie then realized it was her cookbook that had gone missing. That also explained where her sheets, the flour, sugar, baking powder, and various other items had gone. Pearl and Amethyst had stolen them to make a house. They didn't know any better. The girl didn't mind though as long as it made them happy.

Connie gingerly took one before munching down and her eyes turned to diamonds. "Wow! These taste even better than they look!"

"I'm glad you and Amethyst will enjoy them!" Pearl hummed happily, putting a arm around Amethyst.

Connie was surprised Amethyst wasn't upset by it, but then realized it had been weeks since she'd last seen them. They probably had bonded. "Pearl, this is culinary art!"

"Pfft. Yeah right." Lapis grumbled as she walked up next to Connie. "It's just food."

"Just food?!" Connie and Amethyst gasped in horror. Lapis liked food!

"Art, food, whatever you want to call, I myself like the term Amethyst came up with." Pearl smiled happily.

"Brace yourselves, guys." Amethyst said, crouching down slightly as if to reveal a great secret.

Lapis grabbed a pole and then Connie's hands. "We're braced."

"I call it… tea-toop."

"Tea-toop?" Connie asked in confusion as Pearl pulled them over to a wall. There, underneath a painting of a nice looking couple, on the floor were many items that seemed to be lined up, Connie was surprised they weren't thrown into the junk pile with the rest.

"Our tea-toops!" Pearl repeated with pride, displaying their treasures. She picked up a broken tape recorder that Connie recognized from what felt like so long ago, the purple ribbon was still wrapped around it from when Amethyst had broken it. Yellow tape was wrapped around it as well. "I call this, Thank You So Much. It shows how Amethyst and I struggled at first, and felt broken! But the tape represents how Connie healed us and our bond! Also, it makes me feel guilty!"

"Heh, me too!" Amethyst smirked, walking over to another piece of art. She then lifted up a familiar broken tennis racket and smirked with utmost joy at her piece. "This tea-toop is mine, it's called, Suckers. I have it because I wanted to use it to beat those Homeword Jaspers to the ground because they called us lackies, they were suckers. Also, because that's the day I took charge of them! Heh, if they come back to get us again, I'll show them who's boss."

She then dropped the racket and picked up a feather. "This one is real special. It's called, Fact About Home. It reminds of that time where Connie gave me a feather and told me that I always had a home."

"Oh, Amethyst, that's so thoughtful!" Connie cried with little tears in her eyes.

She then noticed a shattered hand mirror next to it and frowned. "I'm guessing that one shows how badly you wanted to get out of that mirror after thousands of years, you know, we can talk-"

"Kid, I just broke that because I was rolling around the barn!" Amethyst laughed.

"Oh." Connie giggled with a blush, wiping away her tears.

"And our last tea-toop, we made this one together!" Pearl announced, pulling Connie to another piece.

This tea-toop was a dead flower crown and cracked black sunglasses on the ground with sword in between them.

"Um… what's this called?" Connie asked with a tiny laugh, not sure if she wanted to know.

"The piece is called, Chains No More. It symbolizes how Amethyst and I no longer feel we must please Rose or Garnet because we think they're better than us! And that now, we fight for Earth, and those two are dead to us!" Pearl cried, smiling happily.

Lapis' eyes widened and her teeth gritted at the mention of Garnet.

Pearl noticed this and smiled a little. "Lapis, you seem very tense! Why don't I with my new found love of baking make you something to fix you?" She twirled over to the makeshift kitchen and picked up the flour along with a measuring cup. She hesitated before pouring it though. "Amethyst, I believe I need instructions on a baked tea-toop, would you mind getting some for me?"

"Nah, let's just go with the flow." Amethyst said, walking up and grabbing a wooden spoon.

Pearl looked mortified, nearly dropping a bowl before placing the flour on the table next to the measuring cup. "Amethyst, there are clear instructions to follow! We can't just… make up things!"

"Sure we can, we're tea-toop masters, right?" Amethyst asked, opening the flour. "Besides, we don't even need to make food!"

"What would you like to do instead?" Pearl asked in confusion.

"Oh, I dunno…" Amethyst muttered, taking the flour and walking with it. She then twisted around and threw a handful at Pearl.

"Ugh! Amethyst!" She cried, wiping it off in fury while Amethyst giggled and Connie gasped in surprise.

Pearl started chasing Amethyst, grabbing the sugar and throwing it, trying to hold back laughter. "Take that, ruffin!"

Amethyst pulled Connie in and they soon were a mess of yelling, running, flour, sugar, and laughing as Lapis grew angrier.

Connie giggled and threw flour at Amethyst. "Ha, ha, got you!"

"This is war!" Amethyst yelled, and tackled Connie to the ground.

Lapis' eyes widened in anger seeing Amethyst tackle Connie and she snapped. "STOP!"

Pearl gasped and dropped her bag of sugar, seeing Lapis flying in the air, her hands out and her shadowy face looked like a dark storm at sea. Connie and Amethyst slowly got up, Connie placing her hands behind her back and bowing her head while Amethyst crossed her arms with a pout.

Lapis landed, clenching her fists in anger. "Garnet is still out there and you all are just… playing!"

Pearl and Amethyst merely blinked in surprise, unsure what to say or do. They didn't really talk about Garnet because, despite their tea-toop's meaning, they both still had a slight fear of her.

Lapis gave a sigh and grabbed Connie by the hand, pulling the girl away. "Come on, let's get you back to the house."

Connie stumbled slightly, looking back at Amethyst and Pearl. She then firmly planted her feet on the barn floor in stubbornness. "No."

Lapis turned with a frown. "What? Why not?"

"Lapis, I'm tired of being cooped up in there! You never let me leave the house anymore! You always make up some chore or task I have to do!" Connie growled, pulling away. "It's not fair, I'm NOT a baby!"

Lapis tightened her hands into fists and she turned her back to the girl. "I-I know that."

Connie stood in silence. Here they were again, upset at each other because of Garnet. She thought they'd gotten past that, or maybe all they had done was just stop the fight for a moment by sharing their inner disappointments. She wasn't sure. "Lapis, I'm…"

But when she looked up, Lapis was gone. She saw in the distance a winged figure hover over the water tower nearby, and then land in a sitting position.

"Hm. You two don't normally fight." Pearl muttered behind her. "She doesn't seem her usual happy self today."

Connie had almost forgotten that Amethyst and Pearl were there and turned to them. "I'm sorry you guys, we ruined a perfectly good house tour."

"Oh, Connie, it's alright." Pearl murmured softly, smiling weakly down at her. "But what I'd like to know is why Lapis is suddenly so interested in defeating Garnet."

"Duh, Garnet's a turd." Amethyst mumbled, turning away to look through her garbage to occupy herself.

"Well, yes, but Lapis is upset more because Garnet beat her in battle a few days ago." Connie explained and Pearl frowned. "She could've won if Garnet hadn't dug up her past and all her regrets. Lapis regrets so much, she was easy to be taken off guard by it."

Amethyst clenched her teeth in anger. She wanted to show Garnet a world of pain for all she had done to her, Pearl, and Connie, but she held herself back only because she knew it was a useless thing to try. Garnet would beat her in a instant, or worse, she wouldn't poof her at all, she'd force her to fuse again… That was worse than being poofed, far worse.

Pearl gave a sigh and looked up at the water tower. "Come along, Connie. I think I know how to fix Lapis."

* * *

The water gem lay on the tower, her eyes clenched closed. The only reason she hadn't flown off to find Garnet herself was because she had no idea where she'd be.

"Ahem, may I join you?" Pearl's voice asked, making her eyes pop open in surprise.

Lapis shrugged, as if saying 'You can, but don't expect me to talk to you.'

Pearl gently tucked her legs beneath her and sat down, watching the clouds. "You don't need to be caught up in the past, you know. Garnet uses memories to her advantage."

Lapis sat up and hugged her knees close, laying her head on them. "I see Connie told you about our run in."

Pearl nodded slightly, and exhaled before beginning again. "...Garnet is a powerful fighter, she's strong, confident. She has fame, titles… love. I envy her greatly."

"Wow. You're really making me feel like I'm so much better then her." Lapis growled, turning her head away. Pearl closed her eyes and sighed. The water gem glanced at her.

"You didn't let me finish." Pearl muttered, narrowing her eyes. "I envy her greatly for those things, but I pity her for others."

Lapis' eyes widened only a bit, and she looked up. "What do you mean?"

"There's something I feel you should know about Garnet, but I should tell it somewhere else. The information may help you in defeating her."

Lapis stood up and formed her wings, looking coldly at the sky. "Let's go."

Pearl suddenly stood and yelled as loud as she could: "AMETHYST, I'M LEAVING!"

They waited a moment before hearing a distant, "OKAY!"

"DON'T DESTROY THE BARN WHILE I'M GONE!"

"I WON'T!"

"ARE YOU CERTAIN?!"

There was a moment of silence and then a large, "NOPE!"

* * *

Connie, Pearl and Lapis landed gently into the Beta Kindergarten and looked around.

"Why would you want to tell me out here?" Lapis asked in confusion, looking around at the red stone caverns and shivering slightly. She couldn't feel a drop of water in this place devoid of life.

"Because here is where her biggest regret is." Pearl said softly, motioning to the ground.

Lapis frowned. "I don't see anything…"

Connie then realized and bent down, putting her hand to the ground and closing her eyes. "It's the Cluster…"

"Indeed." Pearl muttered, beginning to walk the Kindergarden. Connie followed her while Lapis stared after for a few moments then ran after her.

"W-Wait, I thought the Cluster was her idea." Lapis said in confusion, her bare feet slapping against stone.

Pearl shook her head. "It wasn't hers entirely…"

Connie glanced around at the various holes and frowned. They were uneven, one hole was even curved around a wall, she wondered how that gem turned out…

They kept walking, Pearl softly explaining as if she didn't want to disrupt the quiet of the place.

"Garnet may seem calm and collected but really, she has so many feelings on the inside. She's the combination of Ruby and Sapphire, who are so contrast to one another, sometimes Garnet doesn't even know what to do!" Pearl cried with a nervous laugh.

Connie was still looking around when she noticed a broken injector. It's four legs had been ripped off. She was going to say something but Pearl contuied on.

"Crazy, isn't it? Garnet, unsure of herself. I've only seen it once, and it was when she met-"

"Jasper!" Connie cried.

They turned in surprise and saw Connie beaming behind them. The older gems mouths suddenly fell open, making her smile fade. "Um… it was Jasper, right?"

"That hole sure was…" Lapis whispered, pointing.

Connie turned and gasped in shock. There was a massive hole, much larger and taller than the rest of the holes. Instead of the arms being down like most had emerged, Jasper had come out with her arms up in a fighting pose.

"Wow…" Connie whispered in awe as the other two stared.

Pearl gave a slight cough and smiled. "This takes me back a ways! Um, did you two know that Jasper was supposed to be Pink Diamond's ultimate soldier? Rose was going to meet her a few weeks after she emerged but, uh, my Diamond needed Jasper to guard her that fateful day Garnet was formed and… well, I'm sure you both know the rest.."

Connie still stared and Lapis pulled away briefly, looking at Pearl. "You… said Garnet was unsure of herself, what did you mean?"

Pearl looked around nervously and then bowed her head. "Rose was the one who came up with the Cluster after seeing Garnet, and Garnet, even though she hated to force unwilling gems to fuse together, she did it so she would stay together as one. She did it to save herself. Why do you think she hates fighting other fusions? … It reminds her of the one that never had a choice to be made… She can only fuse for battles alone, just like The Cluster."

"... She… she has regrets about being made, just like I do." Lapis whispered, surprised.

"Exactly." Connie smiled. "Even she has her weaknesses!"

"She does…" Lapis murmured softly, clenching her fist. "... which means I can do the same thing she did to me."

Connie's smile faded at once. "What? No, no! That's not-!"

Lapis ignored her, twirling around to see the Kindergarden and punched the air in determination. "I'll beat her and she'll never go after us again! No more corrupted gems will be taken, no more worry over our heads! It'll all be-"

"This is wrong." Pearl suddenly interrupted. Lapis let her hands fall and turned to see Pearl was bent down, observing a large hole, much, much larger and wider than the rest. "This hole… it looks like it's been dug out, recently…"

Lapis and Connie walked after Pearl down to see the rest of the Kindergarden, wondering what they'd find, and then the gems gasped in shock.

There were large holes upon holes just like the one before, but they had bars on them… Connie recognized the injector legs. They weren't the first to visit this place recently.

"I-I don't understand!" Pearl whispered in shock. "These holes!"

"They're cages!" Connie finished with her hands over her mouth in surprise. She slowly walked up to one, unsure what it held. Suddenly, a green claw sprang out at her and she fell back with a cry. It was a corrupted gem, she saw it pushing against the bars, yearning for freedom. Lapis and Pearl had given cries and pulled her away.

They looked around in horror, seeing all the cages full of glowing eyes staring at them.

"C-Corrupted gems!" Connie whispered. "But why are they caged up?"

"Who would do such a thing?" Pearl asked, holding Connie by the shoulder, mostly to reassure herself.

Lapis was shaking slightly until she caught sight of something and she stopped dead. "She would."

The others looked over and then, as the dust cleared, they saw the tall fusion looking magistic with her back to them.

"Garnet…" Connie whispered.

Lapis bared her teeth and shoved Connie behind her, her wings formed. She took a breath and then exhaled.

It was time.

* * *

 **I hoped you guys liked this chapter! I had help with the name of tea-toop by one of my amazing followers, which reminds me, you all can send ideas and questions about the story if you pm me! Thanks for reading, I'm so glad my writing can make you all so happy! Every time I read a comment, a smile comes to my face! So thank you again!**


	100. Earthlings

They stood there staring at Garnet. Lapis held Connie's hand and squeezed it to reassure her that she didn't need to be afraid. But everyone was afraid deep down.

"What is she doing?" Pearl whispered in shock, hands clasped over her mouth.

"She's captured all the corrupted gems, she must want to use them for something…" Connie answered, her hands trembling. She left her sword at home, again! Why did going to the Kindergarten always result in her leaving it?! "I'm afraid to find out what…"

The apple green creature Connie had tried to capture before gave a roar at Garnet, scraping the bars. Garnet gave a growl and punched the thing in its cheek. Pearl and Connie quietly gasped and Lapis' eyes widened in shock, they were far enough away where she couldn't see or hear them.

Garnet showed no emotion in her face, but her words were cold as she spoke to what had once been a gem, like her. "You don't understand at all. _I_ am your leader now. You must obey me, I am stronger than all of you. ...You used to be one of them, that's what I was told by Rose. You used to be one of those pathetic Temps."

Lapis gave a growl, her eyes flaring in anger.

The monster gave a growl as Garnet frowned in a sneer. "Jasper was the strongest of you, she's a real soldier, a worthy opponent for me, unlike all of you and that worthless failure who was supposed to be a spy for Homeworld."

"W-We need Jasper, now." Pearl hissed to Connie, grabbing her hand. Lapis turned to them with a stare like ice and they stopped in their tracks.

"Pearl, get Connie out of here, I'll handle her, alone." Lapis whispered, narrowing her eyes. "Without Connie here, Garnet can't use her against me."

"Lapis, please, reconsider!" Pearl whispered urgently. "You don't understand, Garnet will win! She sees every outcome, you don't have a chance against her! Jasper only beat her because Garnet was taken off guard by her being free! She will defeat you again!"

Lapis gave growl and turned back to look at Garnet but realized she was gone. "Where…?"

"You should listen to her, you should've ran while you still had a chance." Garnet chuckled behind them.

They turned in shock and the fusion grabbed Connie by her waist and threw her into the wall behind them, getting her quickly out of the way.

"Connie!" Lapis gasped. Pearl ran to the girl, and Garnet let her go, turning back to Lapis. The water gem narrowed her eyes.

"You don't have to fight me." Garnet hissed softly. "I'll spare you, I promise. We can team up, you and I. Yellow Diamond, she's done so much to you, to both of us. Together, we can bring her to Pink Diamond, just like we were made to."

Lapis gritted her teeth. "I chose my path a long time ago, you and I both know for certain that that it won't change."

Garnet gave a shrug. "It was worth a try. The future can be altered." She then gave a growl and punched at Lapis' head, making the gem fly up into the air with her wings.

Lapis felt like she was burning up, there was no water around them for what felt like forever, Garnet had planned it that way. She wouldn't be able to make a clone to defend herself.

Garnet knew that this time she wouldn't be able to hold her back with the past, she had risked everything fighting her close to the ocean. It proved how truly manipulative she could be. She turned and saw Pearl helping Connie to her feet and gave a sigh. "Don't tell me you've joined her."

Pearl stuttered slightly, nearly dropping Connie's hand and then gave a small nod. "I-I have."

Garnet put her hand to her face and laughed. "I thought you loved Rose, so much you'd _die_ for her…. But she'd never do the same for you. You haven't changed at all because of this planet, and these Temps you think are your friends? They'd sacrifice you in a second to save themselves… Pearls aren't very valuable as you know."

Pearl winced and tears stung her eyes. She then wiped them away with a growl. "I won't listen to you! You're just trying t-to upset me!" She then raised her hand up to her gem. "I'm a Crystal Temp! And I can form my own weapon!"

Garnet's laughter ceased sharply and she stared at Pearl, who cowered slightly, but she then straightened herself up, to say it was true, and she wasn't afraid. She then reached her hand up to her gem, praying her spear would come, but nothing happened.

"It's useless! Get Connie out of here, now!" Lapis demanded, not turning to look at them. She then plummeted down from the sky and landed her bare feet on Garnet, pushing the fusion to the ground with all her strength.

Pearl and Connie watched with worry as Garnet threw Lapis off her and onto the stone ground. They could only watch, knowing it would be useless to try and fight Garnet without their weapons.

Lapis rolled out of the way just in time as Garnet punched and she got back up on her feet quickly. She ran and hurriedly flew up to a ledge, trying to escape Garnet best she could before the fusion came after her in a fury.

Garnet rose up fast and walked to the ledge with her teeth gritted. She then punched the rock wall, making Lapis cry out and fight for balance. "Come down, now!"

"Or what?" Lapis growled in challenge, narrowing her eyes and lifting her hands as water came up from her gem. The gem then formed a icicle and threw it straight at Garnet's hand, hoping to catch her off guard. She leapt down and avoided a swift punch.

Garnet stuck out her gauntlet and shattered the icicle into pieces before rapidly punching at Lapis, the water gem barely able to weave around each one . She stamped her foot down on the water with a mere look of irritation at Lapis' tries. "Is this all you can do? It's no wonder you joined Yellow Diamond so easily, it's because you are wrong. Somewhere in your makeup, there's a single flaw that made you care about her, it's a pity really. I feel sorry for you!"

"You? Sorry for me?" Lapis growled, brushing her bangs out of her face as the water rose up again. She kicked upward suddenly, trying desperately to poof her, somehow, but Garnet caught her ankle with a cold stare. Lapis gave a sound in surprise and the fusion threw her to the ground.

"Lapis!" Connie yelled in panic, ran to her guardian.

"We can't let Yellow Diamond get near." Garnet whispered to herself. She suddenly spun around and smacked Connie away with her gauntlet.

"Hold on you two, I'll save you!" Pearl called, tears welling up as she desperately tried to form her weapon.

Lapis gave a grunt in pain as Garnet put a foot on her chest, hard. However, despite it all, the fusion didn't poof her as she easily could've, instead she gave a sigh. "You can't seem to get it in your head that I know everything you will do, everything you'll say… No matter what you do, I'll always be one step away. You're just a single gem, all alone."

Unknown to all, Connie had gotten up, ignoring her bruised side and started to climb up a wall. She held back a gasp as her rock hold broke off for a moment, then she leapt up for another. Her hands glowed a fierce gold.

Lapis stared up at Garnet, fury in her eyes.

The fusion then heard a warrior's cry and turned in surprise to see Connie lunging at her from the cliff. _Impossible!_ Garnet thought, _Yellow Diamond would never sacrifice her own gem!_

This wasn't Yellow Diamond, this was her brave and selfless daughter.

Garnet unfused, Ruby and Sapphire released each other's hands parting so Connie hit the hard ground between them.

"Connie!" Lapis cried, shoving Ruby's foot off her chest. The gem ran to the girl, tears in her eyes.

Connie gave a slight moan, opening her eyes.

"I'm so sorry," Whispered Lapis, tears starting to roll down her cheeks. "I've been pretending that I can't feel anything, but my destiny was to destroy your mother, I should've just shattered myself when I didn't complete it! And the one your mother made for me, protect the Earth, and you? I failed that too! I… I failed everyone I care about!"

"And that will be the last thing you'll ever know!"

Lapis and Connie gasped and turned to see Garnet was formed once more and her gauntlets shone as she walked to them.

"She didn't fail any of us!" Connie cried, sitting up and looking at Lapis with determination. "And it's alright that she didn't do what she was made to, I did too! We can, we will, find new purposes, together!"

Garnet raised her fist.

"That… That sounds like a plan." Lapis laughed weakly, and took Connie's hand just as Garnet was about to punch through her physical form.

Suddenly, a golden ball of light exploded in their place, knocking Garnet and Pearl back and making the fusion turn back to her components again.

Once the light had disappeared, a tall and willowy gem stood in the place of Connie and Lapis. She had light violet skin with a even lighter hair that went just past her ears. The fusion held her hands together and then slowly fluttered open her deep purple eyes with amazement and joy. She looked down to see a top of gold and blue fabric wrapped around her and saw a pair of blue shorts with a lemon tulle skirt.

Ruby, Sapphire and Pearl all couldn't believe their eyes, staring at the new creation in shock.

"She's… She's different then we thought, Sapphire." Ruby whispered shakily.

Sapphire only held her partner's hand. She had known that Connie would fuse again to fight them, it was logical and predictable from what she had seen before, but what the gem couldn't foresee was who the fusion was, what it could do, even with Ruby's help. It scared her.

"I… can't believe it…" Whispered the gem, looking at her chest and touching her gem. She smiled, hugging herself. "I don't know who I am, but I know I love it! I'm me! And I can be anything at all! My destiny's mine!" She laughed and then noticed that Garnet had formed.

"Two traitors as one, how unsurprising." Garnet muttered, walking up to the new fusion. "Who are you now?"

The tall violet fusion blinked in surprise but then balled her hands into fists and looked serious. "I'm Labradorite if Lapis' memory is right."

"Hm. I hope you enjoy what little time you have in this world." Garnet growled, and then she stabbed her destabilizer.

Labradorite gave a growl and the sky darkened around her as she flew up with her water wings sparking with golden electricity. Thunder rumbled, making Garnet look up to see the fusion, who's eyes seemed to glow like yellow embers. Labradorite called over the storm in a booming voice. "This is your final chance to give up! If you don't, I will unleash everything I have until you're defeated!"

Garnet said nothing, her mouth was slightly open in awe at the fusion's power, she then shook her head, annoyed at herself. "I'll never give up! I will make you two pay for what you did to Homeworld, to me!"

Labradorite gave a small sigh, then lifted her arms up into the air. The rain drops froze into hail and she swung both arms to her left, making the hail cluster together.

"Oh my." Pearl whispered dryly.

Garnet thrust out her gauntlets to block it, but despite her incredible strength, the fusion was thrown back by the sheer force of the attack. She gave a grunt in pain as her form started to glow, but she grabbed herself in anger. "No! I have to keep it together! I have to!"

The taller fusion, Labradorite, landed hard in front of Garnet making a huge dent in the ground. She raised a finger and Garnet was pushed up by the hail.

Garnet then punched at the younger fusion's chest, where one of her gems was, attempting to shatter it. Labradorite gasped and dodged quickly, but Garnet kicked her legs from out under her, making her fall to the ground and the hail unfreeze and fall weakly away.

Labradorite sprang up to the air, flying away as fast as she could. Garnet chased her and the younger stopped at a wall, looking like she was too scared to move.

Garnet smirked and punched at her, only for the fusion to fly up with a growl. Her gauntlet instead made contact with the wall, smashing all her force into it. The wall collapsed, and all the corrupted gems were set free.

Knowing this was their only chance, the monsters fled, making Garnet give a yell in anger. "I'll shatter you both!"

Labradorite twisted up her face in anger, and suddenly thunder boomed, making the ground shake in her fury. She slammed her hands down with a yell and a single bolt of lightning slammed down into Garnet.

Garnet gave a yell in pain as the bolt forced her to unfuse.

When the light cleared, Labradorite saw a dome of ice had been made. With the flick of her finger, it melted and went away in her gem.

Sapphire grabbed Ruby's hand with urgency. "Ruby, we have to fuse, now!"

"But, Sapphire, we aren't strong enough!" Ruby moaned.

Labradorite walked up to them, water from her gem going to her hand. It sparkled with electricity and caught fire. She pointed the flames at Sapphire. The fusion then shoved them apart to separate sides of the area.

"Ah, come on! Please!" Pearl begged her gem, still trying to summon her spear.

"Ruby!" Sapphire yelled in panic, reaching out for her love.

"I'm… I'm sorry." Labradorite whispered, her sword going to Sapphire's neck.

Pearl gasped in surprise, still trying to summon her weapon.

Ruby watched in horror, and then noticed out of the corner of her eye that there was one more corrupted gem left in a cage, the apple green one. She ran to it. "HEY!"

All the gems turned to see Ruby place a hand on the monster and growl. "I won't let you hurt her!"

"R-Ruby, please, get away from there." Sapphire whispered shakily, pushing back her bangs to fully see her beloved.

"Don't worry, Sapphy! I'll beat them and we'll finally complete our purpose!" Ruby called, a blush reaching her cheeks. She then gave a growl at the monster, only wanting to show compassion to Sapphire. The two then started to glow and they were gone. In their place was a beast, a giant red and green mess of splotches with a squarelike head and the same body it had before, only more hunched and it had more claws to it.

Labradorite's sword vanished in surprise, but she quickly flew up to the air. The gem made a giant spear out of ice and lifted it with all her might.

In distress, the corrupted monster tried to unfuse with Ruby, and it worked!

The small gem fell to the ground with a cry, but hurriedly got back up, grabbing the monster's leg. "No! I need your help! I'm nothing alone! Nothing! Please, I have to save her!"

The monster didn't understand of course and ran away.

"Ruby!" Sapphire cried, tears rolling down her face. She tackled her love into a hug, kissing her repeatedly. They fused, and Garnet hugged herself, looking relieved.

Labradorite landed gently on the ground and Pearl ran up looking shocked.

"Am… I okay?" Labradorite asked herself. She then nodded firmly, another part of her responding. "I'm alright…"

Garnet then glared at the fusion in anger. She suddenly gave a grunt and grabbed her arm. She looked down and saw green spikes coming up her arm.

"Oh… oh no…" Pearl whispered, putting a hand over her mouth. Of course she had wanted Garnet to pay for what she did, but no gem deserved this…

"She's… corrupting." Labradorite whispered in shock. She then gave a cry in pain that morphed into two, unfusing back to Connie and Lapis.

Lapis grabbed Connie, holding the girl back. "Connie, stop."

"Lapis, please! It's only just started, maybe I can help!" Connie cried, and she ripped herself away. She then slowed, walking up to Garnet. "Garnet, I know you want me gone, but please, try to understand… I can heal you!"

"Yellow Diamond…" Garnet hissed in anger. "You'd never heal any gem!"

"I'm not Yellow Diamond, I'm Connie." Connie replied gently, licking her finger. "Let me help you, I can't stand for another gem to be hurt because of me."

Garnet gave a chuckle, her fingers were starting to turn sharp like needles but she didn't notice. "But you already hurt everyone."

Connie winched, but then reached out to touch Garnet, to save her. The fusion suddenly slashed at her, knocking the girl back.

"Connie!" Lapis cried, helping the girl up. Connie glanced at a cut in her shirt and realized it was already getting to out of her control…

Garnet suddenly started to glitch, her body seeming to turn square like every few seconds, but she didn't care. "You think I'd let you use me for my strength? Ha, that's all you use her for I'm sure."

Lapis couldn't be angry, she was too shocked, seeing Garnet's legs and arms glitch into sharp needle like legs.

"You tricked her, Jasper, even Rose's own Pearl into joining you." Garnet laughed harder. Her face then seemed like stone. "But I'll never let you trick me, Yellow Diamond, not after what you did!"

"Garnet, she didn't trick me, I chose to stay." Pearl whispered gently, walking up. "I chose to stay for the Earth. It's… full of life and beautiful! I learned to summon a weapon! I learned to love it! You can learn to love it too, and maybe Rose can see it for herself! Together, we can maybe be a team again, a fami-!"

"You've grown talkative." Sapphire and Ruby's vvoices growled in unison, making Pearl stop. "This place deserves to die! Your Diamond wants it dead, she doesn't care about it's beauty! And neither do I!"

"It's getting worse!" Connie gasped, seeing Garney start to grow bigger, her voice, now voices sounding more and more distorted and screechy.

"I will shatter you for what you did, Yellow Diamond! That's what you deserve!" Garnet yelled.

"Stop! You're making it worse!" Connie cried in panic. "Why won't you let me help?!"

"You would never help anyone!" Garnet bellowed, making the girl cringe. "You did this! I'll shatter you for what you did to Homeworld! What you did to Rose! What you did… to my Diamond!"

"Pink Diamond?" Connie asked in fear, shaking as a spindly leg stomped to the ground.

Garnet gave a grunt in confusion. "What?! No! My Diamond! Your sister, your family! BLUE DIAMOND!"

Connie backed up, tears welling in her eyes as Garnet fully corrupted, turning her into a three eyed, eight sharply legged and square-like spider of a monster. She lunged at the defenseless girl, making Pearl give a cry.

Suddenly, Garnet stopped.

Connie looked up and saw Pearl's teal spear stabbed into the fusion's neck and she finally, finally poofed. A red gem and a blue gem fell to the ground in her place, both covered in green splotches of corruption.

Lapis gently walked up with Connie not far behind and the older picked up the two, looking at them solemnly. "I… I guess we were both made to avenge our Diamond… I'm sorry that you'll never feel that satisfaction…." She then sighed and bubbled the gems together, she knew they'd like to be together, at least, they would've… She then sent them home and hugged Connie close.

* * *

"I'm sorry I haven't spoken at all, I just… can't believe it!" Pearl cried as they walked away from the warp pad to return to the barn. "I mean, for one, you two fused! I thought that was impossible! And second, I was the one who delivered the final blow!"

"Yes, I'm just happy all the fighting is over." Lapis whispered weakly with a tired smile, wrapping her arm around Connie who grinned.

The girl suddenly gasped in surprise and they looked over to see the group of Jaspers they had seen so long ago wrapped up in Amethyst's whip.

"Heh, I told you I'd show 'em!" Amethyst called.

Lapis gave a sigh in disappointment. Of course, why would she be so bold to assume they'd get a break?

 **Ahh! 100 chapters, can you believe it?! I can't! Part of me loves that I stuck with it, another wonders if it's a good way to spend my time, I still love it! I want to celebrate, but how? Maybe a Q and A about the story or a new origanal chapter? I'd love to hear your ideas!**


	101. Tell Me She Didn't

"I'm sure you're are all very upset about this, and so am I, we were just trying to get a bit more time." Connie explained gently as she could, trying not to upset the Jaspers any more.

"Grr, I wish I had a Amethyst near so I could calm down! We all know I have extreme anger issues, right? We do not want me to get angry again!" A dark orange Jasper grunted, the one with the gem on her back, looking at her team who nodded and mumbled various responses.

Amethyst gave a cough in annoyance. "Well, I'm right here, and I'm a Amethyst."

"You don't count anymore, 8XM, you betrayed us!" Growled a carrot orange one, curling her gem hand into a fist. "You only make us angrier!"

"Everyone, just calm down!" Peridot laughed nervously. "One angry Jasper is terrifying enough!"

"Yeah! I'm too much to handle!" Jasper said pridefully. She then went into a fight stance. "Tell me why you're here, now!"

"I'll explain, since I actually think in this group." Said the one with her gem on her head rudely. The others looked angry and/or slightly hurt.

"Alright, um, what should I call you? I'd like to have something to refer to you all as." Connie smiled.

"Call me Jasper." All four responded in unison.

"Sorry, but no." The Temps' Jasper chuckled. "That is reserved for me!"

"She's right." Connie giggled. She then thought for a second then looked at the one with her gem on her head. "What does Homeworld refer to you individually as?"

"Jasper, Facet 9, Cut 7XR." Said the gem dutifully.

"Facet 5, Cut 7XG!" The Jasper with her gem on her right hand.

"Facet 4G4R, Cut 7XY." Answered the one with her gem on her back.

"Could you call me Skinny? That'd be cool. It's what everyone calls me at home since Lady Rose first did." replied the smallest one.

"Skinny, of course." Connie nodded, adding it to a mental list she was forming. "Now, back to the matter at hand, 7XR, why are you here?"

"We came to find Garnet because you all lied to us." 7XR hissed as calm as she could.

Amethyst and Pearl slowly left, not letting the Jaspers see. They looked apologetic to Connie, but she nodded to them. They were what Rose wanted, and it was best if they hid from her as long as possible.

"You're right! They did lie." The Temps' Jasper growled, stepping forward. "It took me years to gain the gems and this tiny human's trust, I had to keep them calm until you all came back for them, I even had to serve Yellow Diamond, the nerve of her!"

"What?!" The Temps and the Jaspers all cried in surprise.

"But you fused with these traitors! You can't expect us to believe-!" 7XG was cut off when Jasper stomped up and grabbed her by the neck.

"You know, I could always poof you all now, I'm sure our Diamond would love to destroy you all. I fused with those weaklings by mistake! That Lapis Lazuli always forces me to!"

"Oh, I'm the one that forces fusion?" Lapis growled in anger, but Peridot covered her mouth.

"I was made to lead Pink Diamond's army, not Rose. You take orders from me! Understand?"

"Yes!" All the Jaspers cried in unison.

"B-But what about Garnet?" Skinny piped up. "We were sent to find her!"

"Garnet and I go way back." Jasper chuckled nervously. "When she came, I-uh- was relived to have my… ally back! The only reason I went against Pink Diamond and Homeworld was to survive. Garnet is out looking for corrupted gems, we're… making a army."

"So cool… Our Diamond would love to hear that!" 7XG cried.

"Garnet and I are keeping these traitors on Earth, and the human as well! I'll keep them away from our, ur, perfect Homeworld. And this human is clearly nothing special! There's tons like her! Surely Rose can find another she likes." Jasper smirked.

"I guess…" 7XR muttered. "Pink Diamond will have to confirm to this plan, she has wanted these rebels and that human, but she might be delighted to see you're back."

"It could make her excited." Skinny suggested.

The Jaspers hearing that all started to smile and nod to each other, slightly conversing.

"Well then, let's make a report! The nearest Diamond base is on that rock planet," The one with her gem on her head announced, pointing to the moon. "You better bring the gems and the creature with just in case."

"Heh, heh, awesome…" Jasper muttered with a slight growl. She glanced at the Temps with a worried grin.

Jasper was suddenly approached by Skinny who beamed. "I knew you were on our side! When you return to Homeworld, you should totally guard with me. Those Primes are so cliquey."

"Um, right kid." Jasper mumbed, trying not to meet the defect's happy eyes.

"I like you already!" Skinny called, and then ran with the others to the ship.

The Temps turned to each other.

"Don't worry guys, it's just a quick trip to that base and we'll be done!" Jasper whispered.

"Jasper, what are you thinking?!" Peridot hissed. "You insulted Yellow Diamond!"

"That's what you're upset about?" Lapis groaned. She then looked at Jasper pleadingly. "I'm on board just try not to get us poofed by going on a angry outburst."

"No promises, now come on!"

* * *

Soon, they had left the Earth behind and we're flying to the moon. Peridot kept yelling clod at random times, just to remind everyone she was not happy with this plan while Lapis and Connie were leaned up on each other, trying to relax and not think about both this situation and the fact that only about a hour ago they had fused on accident, they prayed that wouldn't happen on this trip.

"Hey, since you think you're our leader, why don't you drive the ship?" 7XR asked, looking a bit annoyed that this bigger and stronger Jasper was claiming her place.

"I don't deal with ships." Jasper growled. "Besides, this isn't even a good one. Why a Roaming Eye? Don't dull-witted Rubies drive these things?"

"Yeah, but Pink wanted all Rubies at Homeworld, practising their fusion skills. Garnets and Rhodinites are great warriors you know." Anwsered the one with a gem on her hand.

* * *

They soon landed the ship, going in through the moon base's door.

"Let's go!" Called 7XR, both her and the Temps' Jasper lighting their gems.

They all were silent, walking up the stairs gently, uuntil Skinny peered up at the mural of Pink Diamond and sighed. "Pink Diamond hasn't been here in ages, it's practically untouched… But we all know why..."

Connie glanced up at the mural and wondered what Pink was like. She had never actually heard that much about her personality, just about Rose's, and that was all Pearl knew anyway.

"This planet was the reason Pink changed so much." Skinny whispered softly. "That's why she hates it. It was her first colony, but after Blue Diamond…"

They all stopped and the lights shone on a mural of a beutiful goddess like figure. She was blue and had long flowing hair, gently lifting her skirts with one hand. Connie saw in her other hand she held planets, her planets. The girl felt her heart clench suddenly and tears came to her eyes, though she couldn't know why.

"Blue Diamond always believed in Pink." Skinny went on. "Pink loved Blue with all her heart because Blue took care of her, and always was the one to comfort her when she was upset. She seemed to be the only one out of the Authority that cared for the youngest Diamond. Blue was the one who thought Pink was old enough to have a colony. And so, she and Yellow Diamond decided on the Earth for her. But weeks later… Yellow Diamond, the very gem who gave her that colony, rebelled against Homeworld to protect it! She gathered her armies, some joining in foolishness and others in fear. She didn't even try and disguise herself, she wanted all to know it was her…. Then she did the unthinkable."

Connie and the Temps were mesmerised slightly, Peridot seemed to be getting a bit nervous.

"Everyone thought that they loved each other, but Yellow Diamond, a past tyrant of Homeworld and the leader of the rebellion, she… she shattered Blue Diamond!"

Everyone froze in shock, and it went dead silent.

 _What?!_ Connie thought, her heart thudded hard and tears came to her eyes. Her fists clenched as she stared wide eyed in confusion and horror at the beautiful Diamond, who was gone forever... "S-She… shattered a gem? But… I…. No! Tell me she didn't!"

Peridot looked at the ground with her teeth gritted, she wouldn't meet the girl's eyes while the rest looked back at Connie.

"Tell me she didn't!" Connie cried again, her eyes narrowing as tears slipped down her face and she gave a growl. "I know she could be harsh on gems, but please, please tell me she didn't shatter her! That's the one thing at of all the crimes she's already done, I thought she'd never do! She… She didn't do it, t-that gem's lying, she must be!"

Jasper and Lapis looked at her with sympathy as if she'd never truly understand as Peridot stared at the ground wide eyed.

There was no response and more tears came to her eyes.

"Hey! You might want to come see this!" A Jasper's voice called. Connie tried her best to wipe away tears that wouldn't stop. She was too upset. How dare they accuse her mother of that! She wouldn't have done that, and if she had, what in the world did that make Connie?

They climbed up the stairs to see the broken communicator, and Connie remembered how simple it had been back then when they had broken it, well, simpler than it was now…

"You broke it!" 7XY bellowed, making the Temps' Jasper wince.

"I couldn't stop 'em, they were, uh, really fired up when I revealed that I… was still loyal to Pink Diamond." Jasper whispered softly. The rest of her group said nothing.

"Well, we'll give you a ride up to Homeworld and you can report to her! She'll be so-"

"No! I won't!" Jasper suddenly yelled, making her sister stop.

"Whoa, chill out." Skinny muttered softly, looking a bit concerned. "Is everything okay?"

"Um… kid, why don't you file that report?" Jasper asked nervously.

Skinny looked at the others and then realized she had been speaking to her. "Uh, you sure you aren't worried I'll mess up?"

"Nah, I think you're smart, prove me right." Jasper smirked, ruffling the little one's hair.

Skinny looked up with the same smirk. "You know I will!"

* * *

Soon the Jaspers were in their ship and Skinny playfully punched Jasper's arm before she walked back. "Hey, see ya later."

"Yeah…" Jasper whispered, feeling pretty guilty.

Once she was in, the ship closed.

Jasper gave a sigh and turned to her family with a weak grin. She then hugged them. "Jeez. That was sorta hard."

"You did great!" Lapis whispered with a smile.

"Um, yes. Very good, Jasper." Peridot mumbled, and she then turned to Connie, who was staring at the mural of Blue Diamond from the hug. "Connie…"

Connie turned slightly, but then they heard the door open of the Red Eye and 7XR popped her head out. Y

The gem had her eyes closed. "Ok, so I know you want to stay on Earth but Pink would be so, so… happy…" She had trailed off when she opened her eyes and saw them hugging. She gave a growl. "... What are you doing?! You'll pay for that!"

The rest peeked out and gave yells in anger, Skinny looked betrayed. They ran out and in their combined anger, they fused.

The Temps were shocked. The Jaspers hadn't fused before! She was as big as Turquoise! But Jasper and Peridot didn't care, their fusion had brute _and_ brains!

"I've had enough surprises!" Connie yelled, and slammed her hand on the switch of the door to the moon base. Strong air tried to pull the fusion out, and her finger hit Lapis right in her head, knocking her unconscious. The fusion then grabbed the wall, trying to stay on and defeat the traitors.

"Lapis!" The Temps cried.

The fusion slammed her hands out and caught herself. "I'm stronger than that, human!"

Peridot and Jasper fused in their anger as well. "Prepare yourselves for pain!" Andalusite boomed in rage at what the Jaspers had done.

"You're not stronger than that!" Connie cried

Andalusite quickly created her shotput and threw it at the fusion. The sheer force made them unfuse and the strong wind pulled them out. But, in a attempt to hold on, Skinny grabbed Connie's arm, pulling them out with them!

Connie screeched out in terror as she was ripped viloently away from the moon base, and her family, and into unforgiving space.

The last thing she heard was Andalusite screaming her name, and then, everything went black….

 **So! I am here to announce I am opening a Q and A! I'm giving you all 2 weeks to give me any questions you want answered about the story and its creation! You are allowed as many questions as you'd like! I want tons and tons to do, I'd love that! I may even give a few hints about what's to come!**


	102. Bubbled

There seemed to be air swooshing around her… Connie heard a loud ringing in her ears as she gained conscious. Where was this? What was happening?

Her body didn't want her to, but she slowly opened her eyes, beholding a blinding light and then… stars. So many stars and a few planets she was going by and seeing it all through a golden lens, was this a dream? She then saw the Jaspers and her mind raced into action.

The Temps! Where were they? Were they even nearby? How long had she been out? But the most important question, how could she breathe? The girl then realised she lay on the curved surface of her bubble, it must've activated the moment she went unconscious as a sort of instinctive safety net… So many things to learn…

The Jaspers looked in panic, they were being pulled by space and Connie was suddenly jolted into a free fall. She screamed in fear, feeling the world around her blur.

Suddenly, she stopped, slamming into something, or rather someone.

"Ow." Skinny grunted, having hit the bubble with her entire body. She then saw the surprised Connie and frowned, giving a mumble. "Oh, it's you."

Connie said nothing as the defect got up and walked on her bubble, seeing Earth in the distance.

"Home…" Connie whispered softly, feeling tiny and alone. She hugged herself tightly.

"Hey, it's your fault we're our here, not mine." Skinny suddenly said.

Connie looked up with a growl. "You all were trying to hurt my family, you knocked Lapis unconscious!"

Skinny rolled her eyes. " I didn't mean to. Someone opened the airlock."

"I didn't want you to hurt us, and I acted on impulse." Connie grumbled. "I thought we could win that way."

They sat in silence for a moment then Skinny sighed. "Yellow Diamond's definitely still alive if those gems are… Wish I could've seen her, tell her what she did to Homeworld… But, she'd never listen to me, I'm just a defect."

Connie said nothing, feeling guilty. Should she show her gem? … No. What was she thinking? That could get her killed. "Um… I'm the defective one, in the Temps."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Skinny asked, laying down and putting her arm around her head. She had accepted that she'd at least not want to die alone, that's why she hadn't left.

"When I was made, I was suspected to be strong and mighty, just like my mother, but here I am… I've been trying not to think about it. The Temps still see me as weaker in the group and they used to leave me out too." Connie muttered.

"...Rose did say there seemed to be something weird about you from the other humans. Must be the fact you feel loneliness like me."

Connie smiled, then nervously grabbed a piece of hair, stroking it slightly and whispered, "So… do you also feel like… you disappoint your team at all?"

"Yeah, all the time. They don't tell me, but I know they feel it, they got to if I'm feeling it." Skinny answered. "I'm just not what I was supposed to be. I'm not like your Jasper or any of the others, I'm just me. It's disappointing. So, what was so great about who you were expected to be like?"

"Well, I…" Connie then thought about it and then realized, she couldn't think of anything other than her mother's strength and boldness… She wasn't as merciful like everyone had said, there was nothing really kind or brave about her, all she had done was run and shatter. " I don't know…."

Suddenly, a small asteroid hit the golden bubble, making them gasp in shock. Then, more hit, and more.

"Asteroids!" Skinny gasped. She then got into a fight stance. "Kid, stay in that bubble! I'll protect you!"

"I'm not going anywhere, but you have to take cover!" Connie cried.

Skinny smirked and punched a small asteroid, making it crumble. She leapt over another, then destroyed one in front of her. They suddenly slung forward and Skinny nimbly avoid the asteroids in their path. Despite being defective, it gave her great agility. They suddenly approached a ramp-like one and Skinny leapt up, letting the bubble roll off the ramp then landed perfectly on top of it.

"Oh no!" Connie cried suddenly, pointing ahead at a humongous asteroid. Skinny would not be able to avoid it. They both screamed and clenched their eyes closed, waiting for the smash, but it never came. The asteroid was perfectly round and Connie's bubble went right through it.

Connie sat in confusion, panting and sweating hard. That was lucky… "We're… alright!"

"Well, yeah, of course we are." Skinny chuckled, wiping sweat away and trying to seem calm. Suddenly a small asteroid hit her straight in the stomach, hitting her directly on her gem!

"Skinny!" Connie cried as the gem fell of the bubble, grunting in pain. The girl then flung out her hand and her bubble at once expanded on its powerful mistress' command, catching the Jasper.

Connie ran up to Skinny, helping her sit up.

"Your gem!" Connie gasped, gently touching it.

Skinny saw her worry and gave a croaky laugh. Oh, that, that's fine. I'll get thrrrooo..." Her voice kept going and her left eye started to grow very narrow. She then seemed to start speaking in riddles. "Yako uoy era, won?"

"Oh no!" Connie cried.

"Ereh erew esor hisw i." Skinny sighed, but Connie of course couldn't understand. "Em laeh ot elba eb dehs."

"I can heal you!" Connie suddenly gasped land Skinny look shocked. The girl stuck to fingers in her mouth and then gently placed them on the cracked gem.

"What are you-?" Skinny then realized her gem was, in fact, healed. "... What? … That's impossible, you're human!"

Connie gave a sigh and shook her head. "I guess I have to tell you now, I'm no regular human, I'm a gem too, in a way…"

Skinny looked at Connie with terror, realization dawning on her. "No… Get off me!" The gem suddenly kicked away from Connie.

"Wait, don't be scared!" Connie gasped, reaching out. "W-We're sorta friends, right? This doesn't change much, does it? I'm still like you!"

"Like me?!" Skinny spat, eyes wide. "You're Yellow Diamond! Only the Diamonds and Lady Rose Quartz possess healing tears! You're just disguising yourself! You made me believe you for a second, I protected you! You took advantage of my weakness! I thought you were just someone that suffered like me, but you lied!"

"No! It's not like that!" Connie cried. "I-I'm not her! I-I didn't do it, I swear!"

Skinny glanced down at the girl's hands, they weren't lit, and she wasn't angry. She remembered her own Diamond, and how Yellow had shattered Blue and practically ruined her creator's life. From what she had heard about Yellow Diamond, she wouldn't hesitate at shattering her too. The gem narrowed her eyes and her gem glowed. Suddenly, a flat staff formed and Skinny grabbed it.

Connie wished she had her sword.

"Why did the only two gems that care about me have to get wrapped up with you?!" Skinny cried and aimed her staff at the girl's chest where her gem was under her shirt. Connie ducked and rolled out from under her. The girl immediately felt the swish of air of the staff and crossed her arms in front of her face, blocking it. "Pink Diamond, that perfect Jasper, my perfect sister! You ruined them!"

"Stop! This isn't smart at all!" Connie grunted, ignoring the statements, and weaving out of the gem's weapon. "How will you even get to Homeworld and give me to your Diamond?!"

The girl blocked, kicked, and punched, landing a few good ones just like Jasper had taught her. Connie then ran around on the side of the bubble and leapt onto Skinny in a tackle. With Connie weighing slightly more, she easily toppled the gem, but then Skinny shoved Connie off and the hybrid fell onto her back. The Jasper then backflipped over her and slammed her pole straight on Connie's windpipe.

Skinny gave a growl in anger, shoving Connie up against the floor of the bubble. The girl could barely choke as the thing crushed her throat, having no idea that the girl was really going to die if she kept the pole there. The elder gave a yell in anger. "I just want you gone! I want you to pay for what you did to her! Argh! Just poof already!"

Connie desperately tried for air, and felt her vision grow blurry, pushing up on the rod. Her eyes then widened. She couldn't do this anymore! Skinny wouldn't listen! The girl let go of the bar, and felt it push even harder, but she then used all the strength in her weak body and shoved her hands up into Skinny's stomach, making her practically fly off. Connie took a deep breath and thrust her hands out making the bubble vanish.

The girl heard Skinny's cry in fear but didn't see the upset look on her face that craved for vengeance.

Connie's bubble formed around her again and she gasped for air, gripping her stomach as she heaved and shivering from the cold. The girl was dizzy from the lack of oxygen and her brain was fighting to try and stay awake.

She wondered if she was finally safe, and gently placed her hand on the bubble before grabbing herself and collapsing to the floor of the bubble, her last thought being, 'I don't want to die out here…'

* * *

"C-Connie? Hey, wake up… Come on, open your eyes, kiddo, please… Please open your eyes…"

Connie wasn't sure how long she had been out for, but when she did open her eyes to Jasper's voice, she wondered if she was in a dream, because Jasper and Peridot were there, and she was in the Jaspers' ship. The girl turned and saw Lapis was watching her with tears in her eyes, and she realized that the water gem must've woken up to panic when Connie had been gone and immediately had started flying around to look for her. Jasper broke into a grin and laughed in joy, and Peridot gave a whimper.

The Temps were complete again.

The tiny gem tackled Connie into a hug, whispering over and over again, thanking the stars that her baby was back and that she was safe. Connie leaned her head onto Peridot's shoulder, smiling while tears came to her eyes.

Lapis hugged her from behind, hard. She was alright… Her girl was okay… if anything had happened to the hybrid, the water gem honestly didn't know how she would've lived with herself.

Connie felt Jasper shove them both off and stared down at the girl with wide and surprised eyes, her mouth slightly opened in shock. There were small, nearly unseeable tears in her eyes…

The girl then was sweeped into the hardest hug she had ever received, crushing her. Jasper said nothing, but had her teeth clenched and tried not to cry. This one tiny human meant everything to her, she along with the other Temps, she had promised to never let any harm come to Yellow's child, but Connie was so much more than that. She was their child now, and they had never been so scared in their lives then when they thought they had lost her.

Lapis and Peridot joined in the hug and Connie felt tears roll down her cheeks and she gave a tiny sob in joy, she was safe and alive!

They were all crying now, and stood there, just holding each other for what felt like forever…

* * *

After many minutes of checking again and again that Connie was alright, the Temps were finally headed back to the Earth, their home, far away from Homeworld and Pink Diamond's grasp.

Connie stood by a window, staring out into space and then finally whispered, "..I know that my mother did some terrible things, like poofing Zircon, and leaving you all without a explanation, but… she couldn't have shattered… I thought it was too evil for her, o-only villains do that, right?"

There was a quiet that filled the ship and Lapis glanced up in surprise at Connie's statement while Peridot stared hard at the controls.

"...Your mom was difficult to understand, kid." Jasper grunted softly, walking up to put and a large hand on her tiny shoulder. "But what we could understand was that she loved the Earth, and she'd do anything, anything at all, to protect it from Homeworld. Even shattering… It wasn't for her, it was for Lapis to choose who she wanted to be, for me to be a individual, not just one soldier out of millions, for Peridot to be happy and love living as a gem, and for you to live and grow with us… We could never want anything more than that."

Connie gently put her hand over her gem and took a breath, accepting it. Her mother had shattered. It was a hard thing to accept after knowing that Yellow Diamond would grow to be merciful so soon after she had done it… was that even true? Had she not let the Temps see what she had really thought after the war? What if she had still thought from time to time how easy it would be to shatter a gem that disagreed with her? Connie was scared to even know…

* * *

 **Hello everyone! Can you believe it?! We're finished with season 3 on this thing! I often wonder if I push these out to quickly, but I love them so much! I think I should probably start separating the chapters into seasons as new stories, so everyone won't have to deal with scrolling all the time, but I'm not sure, what do you think? Also, tomorrow or the day after, the Q and A should be up! Thank you all for your amazing comments! And if you want to know what Skinny was saying when cracked, just read her words in reverse!**


	103. Connie Universe Q and A!

Welcome one and all to the official first Connie Universe and the Crystal Temps Q and A! This is a sort of thank you to all my incredible and wonderful followers! Thank you all for reading and sticking with this for so long! I love writing for you all and I'm so happy you like my story, it makes me feel important and happy!

Just to give a heads up, some questions I can't answer directly, because they're extreme spoilers. And some I'll answer them best I can without spoiling anything so they might be short and sweet.

Okay, so let's get to the Q and A!

 **Our first question comes from Mr Crazy Movies! I'm sorry, but I had to skip over the first two questions due to spoilers! Forgive me?**

 **Is the wedding going to happen somehow?**

Since Garnet is corrupted with no way to cure her with only Connie's powers alone, Garnet can't be healed, therefore the wedding can't happen, at least, not as soon as it did. However, the Temps will have a celebration for all Beach City, what could it be if not a wedding?

 **Where is Yellow Diamond's Pearl? And can you put her in the story please?**

Yellow Pearl will be in this story, and is already planned to appear in the future, but no one, not even Yellow Diamond, knew or knows where she could be!

 **Our next question is from IChangedMyNane990!**

 **Have you ever had to change plans for the fix due to events on the show?**

A few times, yes. Nothing so far that we've seen was changed by the events of the show, but certain viewpoints of them were altered on my point of view. Things in the future chapters were changed in planning, and probably will be changed many times again before they ever reach your screen!

 **The next question is from a guest!**

 **Did you ever think this fic would be so popular?**

Honestly, I didn't really care at the time that I posted if people would like it. You see, this story started by liking all sorts of Steven Universe aus, including the Steven Diamond one, where he is the son of Yellow Diamond and of course Momswap! I always loved genderswaps and character changes, because they give new meanings and views to stories we love! One night, I just suddenly got the urge to write and thought to myself, what if instead of Steven because he wouldn't change from the original, we have in his best friend Connie? The one who loves adventure, and learning how to fight, and was naturally good at it, unlike Steven. Also, what would her interactions be with a character like Jasper or Malachite?

So, late that night, I wrote the first three chapters of the story, and then I fell asleep right away. The next morning, I published the story, thinking, this is just a fun story to write, not many people see my work, but that doesn't matter. I'll just put it on the site so I don't forget about it. I have fun writing it and maybe, like, ten people will have fun reading it. Boy, was I wrong! I had no idea it would become popular at all! A few days after, I got my first 15 or so followers, and I just thought, welp, I better get started writing some more!

The next questions are in a long list, which I love and encourage! They're from 9655!

 **Why did you choose Yellow Diamond as Connie's mom?**

When I thought of Connie being the half hybrid daughter of the Temps, I knew she just couldn't be a Rose Quartz. It just didn't feel like Connie, and I didn't want to have the exsact same storyline. As we see in the show, Doug, Connie's father, is married to the stern woman that Connie calls her mother. Her mom was strict and often kept her child on a tight schedule, not realizing it made the poor girl miserable. But I realized that Connie also had her father, a goofy, more relaxed parent, but he needed her mother to balance him out. So, I thought of Yellow Diamond. Connie, like in the show, still has much respect for her mom, and calls her mother because she often sees her as something to love, but somewhat fear as well. Also, I didn't even know they would compare the two women in the actual show in Stevonnie's Pink Diamond dream! That was awesome!

 **Why did you have Sadie and Lars roles switched?**

In the original draft, they weren't. But, when I thought for the future and that Connie would switch bodies with Lars if I didn't switch them, I realized Connie would be even more confused in a man's body. Besides, in a alternate universe, Sadie could become bitter towards people because she doesn't really have a dad, and grew up shielding herself from getting hurt or causing people to leave, and Lars could be nice if he listened to his parents. This whole series is a 'What if?' Scenario!

 **Why did you do a chapter about Zircon instead of Bismith?**

I love Bismuth very much, but I felt it would make more sense if we saw a different gem in her place, one with different reasons to shatter. I wanted a gem we knew, but at the same time, we didn't know much about.

Unlike Bismuth, Zircon secretly had always wanted control of the rebellion, because she is assertive in many ways. This gem only seemed to praise Yellow Diamond in the trial episode to get her favor and attention. She wants others to focus on her while Bismuth is full of pride for her team, and was angry that Rose wouldn't let them win. Yellow Diamond in this au said she wouldn't hurt her family to Zircon, but as revealed in the last episode, it looks like that isn't really true.

 **Who is Steven's mother in this fanfic?**

In both the chapters, Bubble Buddies and Sparks of Emotion, Steven talks about his mom. In his debut episode, he tells Connie at the bottom of the ocean that, like her, he didn't have a mom, and that his mother died in childbirth. Sparks of Emotion reveals that Steven's mom's name was Lilly, like the flower. She has Rose's body structure, but had instead puffy brown hair that she held back in a ponytail and looks a ton like Steven, having his bushy eyebrows and puffy hair. Cookie cats were her favourite food, of course!

 **Will we see more of Malicite?**

This one I can say directly, we will see more of her, but that's all I'll say, because I want it to be a surprise!

 **Why is Lapis called 'Your Clarity'?**

I believe that on Homeworld, at least in the show, Lapis Lazulis generally are a rare aristocrat, like Sapphires are. Lapis like Sapphire wears a dress instead of a uniform like most Homeworld gems we've seen (Jasper, Peridot, Topaz) In this case, Lapis is still a elite gem, but the Jaspers had no idea that our Lapis was the one that decided to fight for Earth until Jasper said they were the rebellion. Normally a Lapis would be treated with respect on Homeworld.

 **Will we see another chapter of Connie being taken care of by the Temps prior to Gem Glow?**

I actually hadn't thought of that! I don't have a plan for a chapter like that yet, I'd have to get a idea on what I'd want to happen first, so I'd be glad if any of you want to shoot ideas my way!

 **Will we see Yellow Diamond's past before and after she came to Earth?**

Yes, you will! There is still so many secrets and mystery still hidden about her…

 **Will the 'Crossover Nexus' episode appear in this fanfic?**

Much like how I skipped the Uncle Grandpa episode, I'm not going to do that one, I'm sorry. I just feel that it would not add much to the overarching story, and I don't really know any of the shows beside Steven Universe in that episode. I believe the crossovers are just to advertise other shows, and since I don't have the need or want to do that, I won't be making the episode.

 **Will we get to see pictures of corrupted Garnet and/or the Temps fusions (minus Maliacte)?**

I'm not sure. You see, the cover image always relates to the episode. I've always wanted to share my concept art, but I don't know where to! A while back, I started a Amino for this fic, hoping to share more images and ideas there, but no one really joined… Maybe I should make a deviant account for this fic and show the designs there? What do you guys think? Or should I make another Amino for it?

 **Will Lapis and Peridot regenerate into thier current forms from the original show?**

Sadly, though I love their outfits, they will not be, mainly because, they aren't Crystal Gems! It's never been directly stated in the fic, but Pearl, Garnet, and Amethyst have pink stars on their outfits with a pink diamond on top of that. This symbol is the Crystal Gems' still. And before you say, we do see Steven still wears his star shirt! Yes, we do. But when you think about it, he doesn't really know it's the Crystal Gem symbol, in fact, no one but the gems who wear the star know it's true meaning.

 **Will we ever get to see Sugilite and Malachite fight each other?**

I don't really think so, seeing as Amethyst is on okay terms with the Temps, Garnet's bubbled, and Malachite rarely is formed. Lapis and Jasper both have to be comfortable with themselves and each other in order to make her peaceful, any amount of fear or anger make that fusion incredibly unstable due to the past.

Alrighty! That was all the questions I received! If I missed any, please let me know and I'll add them straight away! I'm sorry this took so, so much longer than expected, summer is coming and I've just been getting everything ready for it and my writing program would not cooperate. Thank you all for your amazing support and comments, you all are so special to me, you have no idea how much it means to me you had questions! Well, Kindergarten Kid is next! I can't wait to write Pearl and Connie's newest adventure! Also, I may start to go on a schedule for this fic with everything that's been going on, so, I hope that's okay!


	104. Kindred Spirits

Despite everything that had happened there, the Crystal Temps had to go back to the Beta Kindergarten. Lapis, Connie, and Pearl all felt slightly uncomfortable being there after everything that had happened with Garnet. But, they had to find the corrupted gems that hadn't had the sense to flee once their cages had been destroyed.

Some cages had remained intact despite Garnet having punched the wall they were on, and one of these still cages was what Connie and Pearl walked up to.

Connie peered into the bars and saw a corrupted monster. The thing seemed to be a greenish ball of fur with chicken-like legs. It's gem rested on its back and it had three eyes on either side it's head. The poor thing…

"There's another one here!" Pearl announced.

"Cool, we'll be there in a second!" Jasper called to the gem, she then gave a war cry and ran into a hole that housed a gem. Lapis and Peri gave similar yells, and they ran in right after her.

Pearl and Connie heard the monster roar and then various sounds of water splashing, and metal scraping on the walls.

"I found its tail!" Lapis cried to them all.

Jasper gave a confused grunt then called, "That's not a tail, Laz!"

Connie thought they must be talking about it's hair or leg or something else, when she finally heard a poof sound.

The older Temps came out looking satisfied as Jasper held a bubbled yellow circular gem. She transported it away with a sigh of relief.

"I can't believe Garnet would do something so horrible as to cage a gem like this!" Peridot huffed in disgust, glancing back at the hole.

"But…That's what we're doing." Connie suddenly said with firmness. "Who's idea was it to lock them away in the Burning room?"

There was a silence for a few moments, then Jasper gave a dry cough. "Er… well, your mom's."

"I thought so." Connie muttered softly, looking at her gem.

Peridot quickly injected herself into the conversation. "But your mother only did it to protect them, she may have shattered before, but she knew that Blue Diamond-"

"I was just wondering. I know I'm supposed to still look up to her." Connie cut in gently. She then turned back to the cage.

The monster gave a screech at them, showing three tongues that sprang out like tentacles. The thing tried to run up a wall but soon landed on what would be its head.

Pearl gave a sigh in disappointment, putting a hand on her head. "It's a shame they had their minds and bodies absolutely ruined. They were perfectly good era ones. Now they're just brainless, terrifying beasts."

"Move aside, you two." Jasper grunted, pushing them away from the cage. "Lapis, Peridot, look alive, it's gonna run."

Lapis made her wings into fists and Peridot turned her pole to a hatchet.

Jasper formed her helmet and then ripped out part of the wall along with all the bars.

The monster gave a screech and barreled into Jasper. The gem gave a yell in anger, holding on tight and trying to slam her helmet in on the gem.

"Lapis! Let's make this thing even more dangerous!" Peridot called, and threw her hatchet at the monster.

Lapis thrust out her hands, and water immediately incircled the weapon, dulling the thing and making it even more effective if it hit. But, it didn't hit.

The monster had already sprinted away from the spot it was aimed and the thing landed, leaving a large rut in the ground.

"Urgh! Poof already!" Jasper yelled, still trying to slam her helmet in.

"Don't worry, I'll help!" Pearl cried. She wanted to help more than keeping Connie away from the fight, which the girl was irritated about. The teal spear finally formed in her want to protect Jasper and the Temps. She aimed her spear and threw, certain it would hit.

It didn't hit the monster, but it hit Jasper's hand, making her lose her grip. The gem gave a cry, and the monster ran off into the distance.

Pearl gasped in shock, running to help Jasper up. "I'm so sorry! I-I thought it would hit it, I wanted to help!"

"Wow, great shot, Pearl." Jasper growled, taking her hand and watching the spear vanish. "I didn't want or need your help. You just got in the way."

Pearl blushed in anger, crossing her arms. "You would've lost it either way! … And you don't need to even worry about it anymore, because I'll find and capture it for you!"

The other Temps walked up just in time to find Pearl walking away with a determined look, trying to prove she would never get in the way again.

Connie looked after her then looked back at the Temps. "... Um, she may need my help…."

"Connie, she'll be fine. Besides, she feels like she's helping, and that's what matters to her." Lapis shrugged with a smile. "Let's just go home, she'll be back."

"But…"

"Go with her if you want, I'm not gonna stop you." Jasper said gruffly, walking to the warp pad. "Just be real careful, and don't get yourself killed, kid!"

"What?! Jasper, we cannot leave our fragile Connie out here, she'll get hurt!" Peridot yelled, running after her. "What if she gets dehydrated? Or the monster has secret claws? Or what if Pearl can't-!"

"She'll be fine!" Jasper called back.

Lapis gave a sigh, giving Connie a hug. "I know you can handle yourself, but if you lose your sword, are you sure you want to be out here without anyone to protect you?"

"Pearl's here. She can protect me." Connie said with a smile, looking off in the distance.

Lapis gave a weak smile. "Oh, er, right! Of course! Well… just be safe!"

Connie soon had caught up to Pearl, after a short sprint.

Pearl gave a sigh, turning to face the girl. "Despite what you all think after that disaster of a fight, I can handle myself just fine!"

"I know!" Connie laughed, clasping her hands. "I just want to help, even though you may not need me to-"

"If you insist on helping, then come along!" Pearl sniffed, turning away to continue walking. "I don't want you getting upset that we're making a plan! I know that the Temps would be so I understand if you feel the need, but I-"

"I love plans!" Connie cheerfully said, running up to Pearl. "They never think things out before they do things, and I always want to make a strategy, but they never take it seriously!"

Pearl gave a patient smile. "Well, you're not making the plan, I am."

Connie's huge smile fell. "Oh…"

"... But you'll help execute it." Pearl added on quickly, not wanting her friend to be unhappy.

"Awesome!" Connie beamed again. "So, what is your plan?"

Pearl hushed her suddenly and pointed.

Connie turned to see the corrupted gem once more, it was staring up at an injector with interest. "Oh…"

Pearl summoned her spear, and aimed it at an injector just opposite of the one that her prey was so fixated on. She squinted, her mouth going into a small and straight line in construction of the plan.

"Pearl, what are you-?" Connie's mouth was covered at once, and Pearl threw her weapon.

The spear hit the injector, making it fall to the ground with a grandiose boom. The corrupted gem gave a screech in surprise, turning to the thing. Another spear was formed, and Pearl aimed as quick as possible to make sure the monster wouldn't move.

Despite that, the monster seemed to hear it and dodged just in time, making the spear land in a patch of boulders on a higher ledge.

"What? Impossible!" Pearl gasped in surprise, she wasn't outraged, but was slightly upset it had failed so easily. The gem grabbed Connie's arm and leapt her down to face the gem.

Pearl summoned her spear while Connie unsheathed her sword.

"Go!" Pearl cried.

The two gave cries and ran to the thing, thrusting out their sharp weapons. The monster then suddenly leapt over them both with amazing agility, making them both gasp in surprise. The thing ran off, leaving Connie panting and Pearl staring in shock.

There was a sudden crack above them and they looked up just in time to see the boulders the spear had been holding back, coming down on them!

Pearl gave a yell, shoving Connie out of the way.

The girl fell to the ground, turning around just in time to see Pearl leap out of the way.

"Pearl! Are you alright?!" Connie cried, running up to her friend.

Pearl dusted off her pink dress, then gave a nod. "Yes.. I think so. Now, come along! We must find it again!"

* * *

After a few minutes of searching, they came across the corrupted gem.

Pearl had soon made a trap for the thing using injector legs as a sort of cage that Connie held high over another piece of the machine. The gem knew that this monster seemed to hold a certain interest in the devices, so she would use that against it.

After a few seemingly long minutes, the monster came walking through, not noticing Pearl hiding behind a rock or Connie above it. The monster hesitantly went up to the injector, peering down at the shiny thing.

Pearl crawled stealthily close to it, quiet and calm.

Connie took a small breath, whispered a tiny apology in her head, and then dropped the cage. Pearl gave a cry in anger and the girl glanced down to see she had dropped it on her partner! "Oh, Pearl, I'm sorry! I-"

"I… I got too excited and wanted to poof that.. turd!" Pearl moaned. She hadn't used the word in a while, but it felt good.

The girl looked up but saw the monster was already much too far away already to catch.

* * *

Pearl soon was walking in the direction the monster had ran in with an angry stride. She had tried her best to stay calm, of course, but this… thing was just incredibly lucky it seemed.

Her young assistant followed her close behind. Connie was proud that Pearl loved taking charge, a long time ago, she nearly begged to be ordered, she thought that was all she could do. She gave a small cough, getting Pearl's attention. "Pearl? May I ask what your next plan is? If you don't have one, I was thinking maybe we could try a gentler a-"

"My next plan is a simple one, Connie." Pearl said suddenly, she had been lost in thought for a moment. "I can't believe I didn't think about it sooner!"

"Oh, what is it?"

"You! You easily poofed that crafty Zircon a few days ago with your sword, this beast won't stand a chance! It has no brain left!" Pearl laughed.

Connie felt eyes widen in shock and she started to sweat. She then made herself shake it off and put herself in a serious mode. She couldn't think of that now, she could be trapped in self doubt later.

* * *

The girl was standing quietly behind a rock, and looked up at Pearl, who stood behind another nearby.

The elder gem watched the monster, waiting for it to stop. When it did, she gave Connie a nod.

Connie quietly stepped closer to the thing, very slowly.

After what felt like a hour of waiting, which was really only around ten minutes, Connie was close enough. The girl unsheathed her sword as quietly as she could, but of course, the monster heard it.

Connie gave a cry as the thing screeched and tried to pounce on her. She hurriedly blocked with her sword, it scratched at her like wild.

"Get away, you monster!" Pearl called in anger, and her teal spear came hurtling towards it.

Seeing that, the corrupted gem was quick to abandon Connie and run off again.

The girl gave a moan, sitting up from the ground. She looked over to see Pearl fuming.

"That stupid thing! It's like it knew you were coming to it! But it couldn't have!" Pearl cried in fury, not thinking at all to help the girl up or see if she was ok.

"Maybe we should make camp for the night…" Connie whispered, seeing it start to grow dark.

* * *

The campfire was warm and cozy, and Connie was leaned on Pearl's shoulder and she roasted some marshmallows the elder gem had given her from the storage in her gem.

They were quiet, both thinking as the fire popped and crackled.

Pearl finally took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh. "I… I just don't understand! That monster used to be a gem, of course, but corrupting it must've destroyed its mind! It must have! It's incredibly sad how different it is from you or me, it's not even a worthy adversary!"

Connie frowned and sat up, looking at Pearl with slight anger. "She is too. She avoided all your plans today. She may look and sound a bit different, but that doesn't mean that she's not smart. We should treat her just like we do with gems like the Temps, she's probably a lot like us inside. I wouldn't be surprised if all she wants is to be safe and happy again."

"Happy?" Pearl cried in surprise. She rolled her eyes. "You're awfully sweet, Connie, but that thing is nothing like us!"

Connie suddenly gave a growl and stood up, making fists.

"Ugh, what are you doing now?" Pearl moaned, looking between her fingers at the girl after planting her face in them.

"You're now a monster, just like that one we've been chasing!" Connie announced.

The girl suddenly gave a yell and tackled Pearl to the ground. "Poof now!"

"Get off me!" Pearl squawked, flailing her arms as she tried to pry Connie off. "You're out of your mind!"

"Really?! You think so?" Connie asked, pushing harder.

Pearl gave a growl in anger. "You're making me upset and I want you to leave me alone! I didn't want this! What did I do to deserve this?!"

Connie suddenly leaped up and brushed herself off. "Did you hear what you just said? All those things must be what that corrupted gem is thinking whenever we attack! You hated it, right?"

"Yes." Pearl grumbled, standing up. "I guess she and I aren't so different."

"All she probably wants is for you to treat her like she belongs with us, and she does!" Connie grinned. "I'm sure you'll be surprised."

* * *

The next morning, Pearl had caught up to the gem, but with Connie's theory in her mind, she slowly walked up to it, willing to talk.

She gave a long sigh and then looked down at it. "I'm… sorry about what I've done to you."

The corrupted gem looked up, and Pearl couldn't tell if it understood or not, but it knew she wasn't attacking.

She squirmed slightly under the unrelenting stare, but then tried again. "You see, I suppose I never thought of it from your perspective and…" She gave a growl slightly. Why wasn't it responding to her? It had humiliated her in front of the Temps! She had to show them she wasn't a nuisance and could get things done. And it would be so easy to make her spear and poof the thing…

Connie gave a gasp in shock when Pearl summoned her spear, attempting to poof it with an angry yell. Of course, the monster immediately started to scratch at her, forcing the gem to the ground.

The hybrid got to the scene as soon as she could, trying to stop them. "Wait! Please, stop! She's my friend! You'll be safe in a bubble, I promise!"

Pearl gave a yell in anger and tried to stab the thing in its underbelly, making it swing itself away, unknowingly hitting Connie away.

The girl wasn't hit very far though, due to her extreme durability, and stood up only to see the monster running away, with Pearl having a firm hold on its leg!

The corrupted gem was so panicked it didn't even think to go around a loop of a crater, making Pearl land on its face, right where the gem was. She gave a growl, trying to pry the thing off so it would poof.

Connie gasped in fear, seeing them heading straight towards a cliff. "Wait!"

The corrupted gem toddled slightly on the edge, but then it fell.

Connie gave a cry, reaching out her hand just in time to grab Pearl's wrist.

Pearl suddenly twist around to face the gem, ready to end the feud. She knew that gem was annoying, but it was cunning, and didn't deserve to be poofed in such an elementary way. She felt like it wanted to go out in honor, just like every gem would when poofed. In that moment, she felt the universe around her suddenly slow, and inhaled. She calculated exactly what she wanted to happen, she wanted to poof that gem. Suddenly, a ball of teal energy manifested in her force and will, and it poofed the gem midair.

"How did you…?" Connie breathed, staring at the spear.

Pearl was shocked as well but then let it vanish. She shook her head in amazement. "I don't know…"

* * *

The two eventually climbed down safely to see the corrupted gem had indeed finally poofed.

Pearl gently picked it up and looked at it gravely. She had done it.

The two stood in silence looking at the gem when it was broken by a yell.

"CONNIE! ARE YOU OKAY?!"

They glanced up to see Peridot running to them with Lapis flying gently beside a slower moving Jasper.

"What was that light? Was it your gem?" Peridot asked frantically, circling Connie.

"No, my gem hasn't glowed in a while." Connie smiled, she then pointed to Pearl. "She made it with her spear and poofed the gem!"

"I always thought you could maybe do it." Jasper smirked, clapping Pearl on the back.

Pearl beamed with a blush but then frowned. "Wait, what do you mean thought? And how on earth did you know when to get here?"

Jasper gave a chuckle. "We didn't even leave, I just knew seeing you get in your angry squawking mode is hilarious."

Lapis giggled as Pearl flushed in anger.

"Well I did it, didn't I? You all saw I'm perfectly capable on a mission." Suddenly, the gem in her hand bubbled and she smiled, touching it to let it go to her home.

* * *

Her home, of course, was the barn. It warped in on Pearl's side of it, which Amethyst saw while munching on chips at their table. She stared for a moment then smirked. "Aw yeah! Corrupted roommate!"

* * *

 **Sorry this took me so long everyone! I'm not that good at writing action sequences, as I'm sure you know, so writing this in just the right way was hard. I've just been wondering why people like this fic if it is a lot like the original show, I've been kinda getting bashed on being uncreative in other places and I was just wondering. I just can't understand why you guys say I'm a good writer and creative, when I'm clearly not.**


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